


Jekyll and Hyde: Duality

by MissTantabis



Category: Jekyll and Hyde (TV)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Gen, Post-Series, Thriller
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-19
Updated: 2016-11-02
Packaged: 2018-07-25 09:37:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 29,931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7527640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissTantabis/pseuds/MissTantabis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the destruction of the Heart of Lord Trash Robert has to realize this victory came at a terrible price. Fear of losing controll, extreme guilt and worry for his friends make him suppress Hyde even more.  However this turns out to be a fatal move for Tenebrae is far from defeated. Captain Dance wants to get back on the Jekylls and reawaken Lord Trash. In one way or another.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A terrible price

**Prelude**

Tension filled the room, together with silence. Hyde glared down at Dance. The man was wearing the same uniform. The same mustache, the same cold, black eyes. And yet this knowing smile on his lips made Hyde shiver in anger. His breath came in fast gasps. Something was different. Something had  _ changed _ .

The incubus. It was inside of Dance. How it had managed this, Hyde did not know. But what bothered him was that this undead man believed he could open the Calyx. He was holding it in his leather gloves right now. A dusty, brown jar, inconsiderable, yet so deadly.

“Nice try”, responded Hyde with an angry pant in his voice, “I still don't believe that you can open this.” Dance was bluffing! He had to. The mad man would only believe this if he saw it with his own eyes. However he also knew that this would cost him time. Time, he did not have.

Dance smiled coolly. “I doubt that”, he responded, “We no longer need you, Hyde. I have the power to open the Calyx now. And when I do it, I will unleash its full power and potential. Destroying you and your friends.” He placed his hand on the cap. Hyde's nostrils flared anxiously.  _ No! This is impossible.  _

Dance's hand slowly moved sideways as he made the cap crack open. A glimmer of blood red light leaked through the slit. It flew through the air, hitting Hyde's chest, making him grunt in pain. It was as if a blade had cut through his flesh. A brief glimmer of power. Dance was about to unleash something great and monstrous.

Hyde's jaws were forced open as he unleashed an angry roar. Throwing one of the bandits down the balustrade, he started to race down the stairs. His actions had been a silent signal. Tenebrae charged. And Hyde and his friends charged back. The time seemed to freeze. Hyde hardly noticed Bella, pushing Lily out of the killing zone of a bullet or Ravi, ducking a bandit's fist. Up there Garson, Maggie and Hills were probably fighting as well.

The world could end in the blink of an eye in this house and no one would notice it. Hyde had only eyes for Dance, who was opening the Calyx, sending flashes of red light everywhere. His blood pumped in his ears, together with Olalla Hyde's voice:  _ “You have to find the Calyx and open it. If you can crush the heart before a single heart beat, you will be fine. But the more it beats, the stronger it gets. Strong enough to kill. Even you. And kill all those around you.” _

Dance had opened the Calyx. Hyde reached him and with an angry roar lifted his hand. Blood red light streamed out of it. It vibrated as the mad man pushed a hand in it, ready to make contact with the beating organ that lied in it. A sharp pain shot through his arm as if someone had slammed a blade into the palm of his hand. Hyde crunched his teeth as he grabbed the heart. A loud explosion filled the room and the red glow blinded him. Hyde felt his feet thrown off the ground. And before he could react, the mad man hit the floor and everything turned black.

~Jekyll & Hyde~

The cool stone against his cheeks. His eyes were closed. Hyde could not move. Pain had taken over every single inch of his flesh. His muscles were burning. They felt stiff and frozen. Hyde had no idea if he could even walk.

With a groan, Hyde's lids shot open. The world was a blur. Grunting and grumbling, the mad man tried to focus on something, anything. Finally his vision stopped spinning around and he could see the jar before him. It was broken in several pieces, smoke fumed from its shreds, a fair purple shade.

And in the center of it all laid the heart. It was not really intact as blood was spilled everywhere. The flesh had a dark shade over its red skin as if it had been burned badly. An aura of villainy, bitterness and maddening rage laid over it, slowly fading away. It was as if Lord Trash had realized that he had just gotten imprisoned in this other world even more.

The sharp intake of another one's breath. Hyde grunted as he came to his feet. He watched Captain Dance, readjusting his footing as well. The mad man bared his teeth with an angry growl, preparing for another attack. His opponent was a mess. There were several bruises of ash over his clothes and even his face seemed to be covered in dust.

Dance glared back at Hyde. His eyes flashed in anger when he eyed the heart. However the Captain kept his composer. “You won this time, Hyde”, he whispered and every word sounded like a threat, “Next time won't be this easy.”

Hyde growled as a response and watched. He was ready to pounce, but Dance commanded sharply: “Retreat! All of you!” Fedora, Silas, the Vetala and bandits hurried passed him, storming towards the exit of the laboratory. Dance was the last to follow. Before he disappeared, the undead man glared back at Hyde, hurt pride, anger and selfishness in his glance.

Hyde stood up. His neck cracked as he rolled his shoulder. Soft moans, sighs and groans made him turn around. As the mad man spun around, he slowly disappeared back underneath Robert's skin like an illusion, dissolve into thine air. The cyan glow was replaced with a warm green and the veins faded, leaving soft, healthy skin.

“Is everybody alright?”, asked Robert anxiously. His glance glittered in worry. Olalla's words still echoed in him. The heart had the ability to kill. If Dance had been able to kill Bella or Lily or Ravi… It made him quiver in fear. They had to be alright! They just had to be alright!

“Ouch! I have got muscle ache on parts where I did not even know they exist!” Bella Charming peeled herself out of a bunch of broken chairs and shelves. Dusting off her silky clothes, the black haired woman was busy checking her hair and arms. “This place is a mess! Really, it is like a tornado raced through it.” 

Robert laughed feebly. He may not really like Bella, but her directness and blunt sense of humor somehow could be really refreshing. At least one person was alright. And probably so well that she could complain like crazy. He turned his head, when a soft voice asked: “Care to help me please?”

Turning around, he spotted Lily, squeezed between the table and the wall. “Of course”, the Doctor responded. Robert hurried and pushed the table away. He offered her his hand. “Are you alright? Nothing broken, hurt or anything?” She laughed feebly, her clear eyes sparkling. Taking his hand, Lily Carrew allowed Robert to help her on her feet. “I am fine”, she reassured him, “Thank you, Robert. Oh” - she turned around to face Bella - “and Bella, thanks for pulling me away from that shot. Fedora almost got me.” The bar owner simply lifted her shoulders. “No problem”, she replied with the typical soreness in her voice, “Anyone else would have done the same.”

Robert turned around. His face remained a frown. He would only calm down when he was sure that everyone was alright. “Ravi!”, he shouted, “Where are you?”  _ Please God, tell me, he is alright! _ “I am over here!” Robert looked up and felt the air leave his lounges as he sighted in release. Ravi's messed up hair surrounded a shocked and surprised looking face.

Robert smiled and whispered more to himself then to anyone else: “Thank goodness everyone is alright.” He looked around. It seemed Tenebrae had taken a greater loss then he had. In their fight they apparently had destroyed several Vetalas, judging from the black dust and re thorn clothes, and the bandit Hyde had thrown over the balustrade had broke his neck.

“Alright”, the Doctor nodded, “Let's go and check on Garson and the others. I only hope they are just as alright as we are.” The others nodded in agreement and the small group raced upwards the stairs, out of the laboratory and into the lobby.

The place looked almost as demolished as the lab downstairs. Broken chairs, re thorn carpets, and pieces of wood laid around, scattering. The fire in the chimney had died down. Parts of ash, still glowing softly, glimpsed on the carpet. Several dead bandits and remains of Vetala clothing showed that Maggie, Garson and Hills too had been forced to stand their ground.

When Robert, Lily, Ravi and Bella entered the main hall, they got greeted by the tip of a flowering sword. It was held by Hills, who now lowered the weapon. It might only serve decoration purpose, but from the blood on its blade Robert could tell that it had been tested in a new fashion this evening.

“Thank goodness it is you”, called Hills and smiled, “I thought it was one of the boney guys.” “The Vetala are mostly dead”, responded Robert, “It's over, Hills. Hyde, I, managed to destroy the heart.” She did not looked too happy about that. Her smile was feeble and her eyes clouded. Robert felt his heartbeat quickening. “Are you alright?”, he asked, “You are not hurt, are you? What about Garson? And Maggie?”

Hills merely stepped aside and revealed Garson who was kneeling over someone in front of the fireplace.  _ No!  _ “Maggie!” Robert pushed himself passed Hills and sprinted over towards the old man and his grandmother.

Garson had placed Maggie on his lab. The old lady was breathing in fast and tired gasps. Her grey hair was a mess and her skin had the colour of marble. Robert could not spot any visible injury, but he saw the life, flooding out of her like blood, streaming out of a wound.

Garson had pressed his hands on Maggie's chest. He looked incredible old. The white haired man whispered: “Maggie, please stay with us. Robert is here. He can help you.” Everything started to spin around Robert. He felt the tears in his eyes. Sobbing, he fell on his knees. His hands were shaking as he took Maggie's hands.

“Maggie”, he whispered desperately, “Stay with us. I can help you. I can heal you.” _No!_ She could not be taken away from him. He had just found his real family and now death wanted to take away his grandmother. Robert wanted to scream. He kept crying and whispering words, praying that they could keep Maggie in the world of the living.

A quiet sigh made him look up. It took Maggie a great effort, but she slowly turned her head. Her lids fluttered as her wise, brown eyes looked at him. “Robert...” Her voice was a faint whisper. “Schh”, responded Robert, although his voice choked on tears, “Be still, Maggie. You don't have to say anything. It can wait.”

Maggie responded: “It is already too late for me, Robert.” “No!”, called Robert, “I save you! I won't let you die!” The old woman lifted a hand and guided her grandson's hand towards her belly. He sensed an incredible heat, reminding him of the feeling Hyde had had when a flash of red light had hit him; the feeling like a blade ran through your flesh. “The Calyx' power has hit me”, she explained, “You cannot do anything against it.”

“No…..no...”, whimpered Robert. They had cheated death once with Hyde's blood. Surely they could do it again! He would not just sit here and let Magarete die. He would be a monster if he did this. Maggie swallowed and took another shivering breath. “Louis would be so proud of you”, she whispered.

The dieing lady lifted her hand again in an attempt to lay it on Robert's cheek. The young Doctor caught her hand and softly placed her palm against his cheek. He was still crying. Maggie smiled at him and it was the friendliest face of her he had ever seen. “I am proud of you. It...is such an honour to have you as a grandson.”

Robert cried and squeezed her hand. “Thanks, Robert...Garson...” Maggie looked at her old friend and lover. “Thanks for finding me.” Her eyes slowly closed and in a last shivering breath her chest sunk down.

“Maggie?”, asked Robert and patted her cheeks, “Maggie!” A dreadful cry left his lips and for a brief moment he feared that Hyde might just come back. But his alter ego remained deep in the wombs of his subconsciousness, silent, but just as remorseful as he was.

Robert buried his face on his grandmother's chest and started to cry. He hardly noticed Garson patting his back. The old man too was crying. Very slowly Hills, Bella, Lily and Ravi moved closer, shock, dismay and grief in their faces.

Hyde had destroyed the Calyx. But its deadly powers had gotten one victim. Margarete Hope. Robert did not know what he felt more. Remorse, sadness, grief, shock, anger, helplessness. He was an emotional wrack, a complete mess. He had not wanted this to anyone. Hyde had destroyed the Calyx. But maybe the price they had paid for their victory was too high.


	2. Differing Opinions

**Prelude**

The cathedral was silent. Candles glowed in the darkness, giving it an ancient chill. The place was empty except for a large grave that stood in its center. Parts of the stone were broken as if somebody had been slammed into it with great force. Behind the tombstone which looked more like a stoned sarcophagus was an image encased in the opposite wall.

It showed the large face of a man with curly hair and a beard. He had bushy eyebrows and a firm serious look. Behind his ears were two curved horns like the one of a goat. Pan. The god of forests and nature. There was a small crack in the stone across his face and behind this gap a fair cyan glow shimmered through.

Olalla Hyde was leaning against the half broken grave. Next to her sat Renata Jezequiel. The woman's hair was white as snow and her breath came like a weak whisper. She was leaning against Olalla like a flower that wittered away.

Renata was dieing. It was an undeniable truth. The Incubus had sucked much out of her life force. But in her last moments the Black Dog had revealed a lot to her cousin Olalla. Most importantly: The Jezequiel's Family Album was an enchanted book that contained instructions how to open the gateway towards the realm in which Lord Trash was trapped. For centuries it had been the Jezequiels' duty to watch over this gateway. And since they and the Jekylls were one and the same family, Olalla had taken it to herself to become the next guardian.

“It is up to you now”, whispered Renata, “Guard it well. Good luck.” Olalla softly caressed the dieing woman's shoulder. “Can I do something for you?”, she offered. “I'd like to change one last time.” Olalla rose and stepped backwards. Her face remained calm and cool as she watched Renata slowly laying down before the tombstone.

Her body shimmered and shifted. Fur grew out of her skin, her fingers formed into paws, her face seemed to melt as it disfigured and deformed itself into a dog's snout. Where Renata had been laying, now laid a large, black dog.  _ Oh, Renata. _ There was no tear in Olalla's eyes. Years of living as Hyde had made her learn to cry on the inside and show emotions only when they were absolutely necessary.

A cold gust of wind ran through the cathedral, blowing out the candles. Olalla shivered and threw herself on the floor. An angry roar filled the air as if something from very, very far away was just realizing its chance to pounce was gone. Something that was not from his world.  _ Robert, please tell me that you did it! _

Panting, Olalla peeked around the tombstone. It glowed even more and the young Hyde feared a new crack to appear in the wall. But then the glow faded and a deadly silence filled the room. Olalla shivered in the cool air. Standing up, she looked anxiously in the direction where London laid. One name left her lips: “Robert.”

~Jekyll & Hyde~

They had chosen the same graveyard in which Max Utterson was buried to held Magarete Hope's funeral. The trees were in full blossom. Green leaves and the grass shone between silvery tombstones. The grave was completely covered. On the stone stood Maggie's name.

It was a small round. Only the people that had been closest to Maggie had come. Robert, Garson, Bella and Ravi. They all wore black clothing and stood around the grave, hands folded like silent prayers. Robert was still crying. Garson now probably handed him the fifth handkerchief to dry his swollen eyes.

Robert felt incredible empty, hurt and sad. Like a wound that did not want to heal. And every tear brought fresh salt in it and made it burn and sting. Or was it this feeling of guilt that made it burn and sting? It was hard to tell.

Robert felt like he stood over a pitch black hole, which engulfed him, swallowed him. And even in this darkness he would not be left alone. Robert thought, he heard voices scream at him.  _ “Murder!” “Monster!” “Robert!” “Robert...” _ Faces peeled themselves out of the smooth darkness he was in. Grotesque and pale. Max Utterson. Maggie. Amma. Doctor Najaran. They all surrounded him, screamed at him. But then a voice became louder then the others.

“Robert!” A bony, stiff hand slapped his shoulder tenderly. The Doctor turned his head. Garson looked up at him. His furrowed face looked sad, kind and pitiful. He moistened his lips. “Don't blame yourself, boy”, he said.

Robert lifted his brows and shame rushed to his cheeks, turning them red. “Who says that I think it is my fault?”, he stammered, before dropping his head, “Can you read me so easily, Garson?” The old man gently shook his head. “As Jekyll, you are much easier to read then Hyde. And it does not take much to see the grief in your face. We don't blame you, Robert.”

“But...”, protested Robert weakly, “if I had been faster, she would still be here. I put you all in danger.” He turned his head away and whipped over his nose. _This is all my fault._ Bella approached him. The bar's owner laid a delicate hand on his shoulder. “We all were aware of the risks”, she stated, “We could have moved away. But we decided to stay. Robert, we knew that you could not do this on your own.”

Robert sighted and looked at Bella. His face could not unfrown. They might say that but in his heart he feared that they thought what he thought: If he only had been faster, everyone would have survived. If he only had moved them away, because it was not save, no one would have been in danger. All these If only…

“Robert, look!” Ravi's sudden call made the Doctor look up. The young Indian boy was pointing at a figure who trotted across the graveyard towards them. _Who could that be?_ Shielding his eyes with his hand, Robert looked at the person, coming closer.

She was wearing a white blouse with a black, short vest. Her hair danced in the wind, golden locks. Bluish green eyes scanned the place and freckles covered her nose. She was wearing black trousers and a pair of dark leather boots.

“Olalla”, breathed Robert as his twin sister stopped before him. “You are alive!” A relieved smile cracked on her lips and she threw her arms around him. Reluctantly Robert hugged her back. Olalla leaned against his shoulder and whispered: “I knew that you could do it.”

She stepped back. Robert asked: “What are you doing here? I thought you were with Renata.” She responded sadly: “Renata is dead, Robert.”  _ No! _ Robert's eyes widened and he felt more tears in the corner of his eyes. Another death. The realization hit him: If Louis was dead too, he and Olalla were the only members of the Jekyll family left.

“How?”, asked Robert and his voice shivered. “Old age.” Olalla softly laid a hand on his shoulder. “That Incubus took a lot of her life, Robert. She had aged rapidly during the last few days.” The blonde fell silent and turned her face away. Robert wondered if she felt guilty, because Renata had sacrificed herself to save the young Hyde from the demon's kiss.

Robert felt like even more of his feelings left and more sadness ran into him. He had liked Renata. She was his cousin and family. But she had also been more to him. For Robert she had been like a mentor figure. Someone to look up to. Sure, she had greeted him rather harshly when they first had met, but once she understood what he was, she had warmed up to him. Robert would miss her.

“But what about the gateway?”, asked Robert in confusion, “Renata was the last guardian.” Olalla puffed out her chest in pride. “I am the new guardian of the gateway now”, she explained, “And maybe I do not have to guard it as much as Renata used to. After all Hyde destroyed the heart of Lord Trash.”

Robert frowned. His glance became cold and guilt laid itself in them like a pebble in dirty water. “Robert?”, asked Olalla, “What is wrong?” “Maggie died because of me”, whispered Robert. The words first came slow and quiet, but soon his voice got louder and louder. “I should have been faster. But Hyde wasted his time screaming at Dance. It is always his fault. I have got the feeling that the only thing he brings is death and destruction.”

Olalla's eyes widened slightly. “How can you say such a thing?”, the woman asked, “Hyde saved your life. It was his speed, agility and strength that made you move through this fight. He made you crush the heart.”

“And its power killed Maggie in the process”, Robert finished her sentence and his glance became grim, “It is not the first time that my actions or his actions endanger somebody's life. Max died because of me. My parents died because of me. Ravi almost died because me! Maggie died because of me!”

Olalla seized his wrists as he was about to claw his hands in his hair. Her eyes became warm with concern. “This is not your fault”, she whispered, “Why do you blame yourself? You did what you had to do.”

“Then crushing this girl's throat was also something I had to do?” Robert laughed bitterly. Why didn't Olalla see? _Look at me!,_ it screamed inside him, _Look what Hyde made out of me! I am a murderer. I endanger everyone's life!_ He just wanted them safe so badly. He wanted to protect his family and friends. But no matter what he did, every action seemed to make a new threat arise.

“I don't understand”, whispered Olalla. “Can't you see?!”, called Robert, “Ever since I come to London, the life of those around me turned into a living hell! I want them safe. Is this asked too much? But whatever I do, somebody always pays. And it often is someone close to me. Max, Amma, Doctor Najaran. I am the reason why their life ended. Everyone is after Hyde. And because of this, they all target those around me.”

He looked at Olalla. His words had come fast and in dry gasps. Sweat ran across his forehead and he felt his muscles tremble. “Sometimes”, he whispered, “I wish I had stayed in Ceylon. Then none of that would have happen. They would still be safe and sound.”

Olalla crossed her arms and narrowed her gaze. “That is wish fulfillment. What do you think would have happened?”, she asked angrily, “Dance would have showed up anyway. I was there. I saw how he was given the order to find you. Do you really think you could have faced him when you were Jekyll? Things would have turned out way worse.”

Robert glared at her. He had not made this assumption. The idea of having to face Dance completely unprepared. He could almost picture how it would have turned out. In the pressure Hyde surely would have broken free, get overpowered and captured. But maybe his family would have been save.  _ Don't be a fool! _ , Hyde hissed inside of him,  _ Dance would have killed them anyway. _

Robert's neck twitched as he tilted his head. His eyes glimmered and his nostrils flared. He angrily tried to suppress Hyde. Not now. He could not let him out here. In fact Robert thought about never ever letting Hyde out again.

“It is not just that”, admitted Robert, “You saw what Hyde can do, Olalla. His rare power, his anger.” He shivered and his brows wandered upwards. “I cannot let him out. I will only harm someone. He is the cause of all these things. He is a monster and I don't want to become a monster. Don't you see why I feel so rethorn and guilty? Hyde is the reason behind all of these actions. If he was gone, they would end, wouldn't they?”

Olalla's lips twitched. She looked baffled, surprised. Then her eyes narrowed and a chuckle escaped her throat. Robert felt his anger tighten in his throat as he saw his sister tilt her head back and roar with laughter.

“That...”, panted Olalla, “that is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard! Hyde is not a monster. Nor is he the reason you should feel guilty. You should not blame yourself. This was not your fault. Besides you cannot block Hyde out. He is part of who you are. And I thought you had finally accepted him. I mean, you cannot deny it. He is you. And you are him.”

Olalla spread her arms. “So why are you making this so complicated?”, she asked, “Can't you see what you are gifted with? Hyde gives you incredible strength, speed, healing abilities. That is not a curse. That is a blessing!” Her eyes flashed and Robert could tell that she meant every word that she said. It made his stomach turn over. “Only a fool would give up on that.”

Robert's brow furrowed. The knot in his throat tightened. He tried to swallow, but this was hard. Cyan stole itself softly in his glance and a low growl laid in his voice as he shouted: “Listen to you!” He took an aggressive step forwards and jabbed a finger at her. “You sound like Captain Dance. Why do I even try to explain this to you? You will never understand. You are a human risen among monsters!”

Olalla looked at Robert as if he had slapped her across the face. Shock, surprise, sadness and repressed anger laid in her glance. So many hurt feelings. As soon as Robert saw this, he immediately regretted what he said. Hyde seemed to breath in his neck. The Doctor coughed and tightened his tie.

Olalla furrowed her brows and her eyes glowed cyan. An air of silent anger, violence and remorse laid around her. “If you knew anything about Tenebrae or Dance, you would not say this”, she spat, “Grow up, Robert! You act like a moron! Hyde and you are the same person! No matter how much you pretend, he will always be there. Until the day you die! The sooner you see this, the better.”

Robert did not answer to that. He was fed up with everything. Fed up with his guilt, fed up with Hyde, fed up with people, trying to tell him what he was supposed to be and to do. He was fed up with being reduced to the monster inside of him.

Feeling Hyde lurking inside of him, trying to break through his skin, Robert tried his best to regain his composer. Taking a shuddering breath, the man tightened his tie and corrected his suit. Under the watchful eyes of Bella, Garson and Ravi who had remained awkwardly silent during this stand-off, he turned around and made his way towards the exit of the graveyard.

Olalla took a few steps. It almost seemed like she was not sure if she should go after him. But her pride was as big as Hyde's. So Olalla only shouted: “Do not turn your back on me, Robert Jekyll!” Robert ignored her and reached the gate. “You cannot run away from who you are.”

The Doctor stopped. Robert's voice was not loud, but every single word could be heard clearly. “I know, I cannot run away from him, Olalla. However I will find a way to rid myself off him once and for all!”


	3. Bad Luck

**Prelude**

It was funny that people hide underground and in darkness when they wanted to do forbidden things. As if the darkness could protect them from all the bad things they did to one another. Heaven and hell both live in darkness as a savior can also be hidden from the eyes of others.

MIO – Military Intelligence Other – was such a savior. Well, that was what they claimed to be. They were the branch in the government that protect England and its citizens from any supernatural threat. And they did it in secret. And as everything that was done in secret, they did it with lies, cheats and without any conscience.

Right now Sir Roger Bulstrode and his men were standing in the main foyer. They all were holding guns, loaded with bullets that were made specifically to kill supernatural beings. But no one fired. They waited. Anxiously, worriedly.

Bulstrode knew enough about monsters and magic. Important events caused by a monster created some kind of wave that spread across the country and every being with the right senses could feel it. In some cases even dull humans like he could sense it. And right now an event was taking place that was such a case.

The Calyx had been opened. Bulstrode felt the harsh wave and knew that everyone was waiting. The time seemed to freeze. His men looked at him. They waited for orders. But Bulstrode remained silent and waited. If the Calyx was opened, it meant that Lord Trash, an ancient demon of rare power and destruction, should have been released.

But nothing happened. The clock ticked. Bulstrode waited. Tick, tack, tick, tack. Silence laid over the room and the tension did not want to loose. Yet, Bulstrode felt that something had happened. But he could not place his finger on what it was.

Sackler, a young agent with blonde hair and a soft face, finally broke the thick silence: “Is it…over?” Everyone looked at their superior. The grim looking, serious man narrowed his gaze. He could not say it was over, but he could clearly say that something had happened. “Sackler”, he commanded, “Go to the next window and tell me what you see.” If Lord Trash had been released, there had to be signs.

Sackler gulped and tip-toed sideways, still holding his gun. The blonde man moved the curtains aside of the window and peeked outside. “And?”, asked Bulstrode impatiently, “How is it?” “Peaceful”, responded his agent. “Peaceful as in literate meaning or peaceful as in 'I am sarcastic, because all hell is going down there and I cannot describe it'?”, the chief asked. “First option”, responded Sackler.

The tension dropped of the room like hot air out of a balloon. Bulstrode's shoulders dropped and his serious face cracked into a brief smile. “Perfect”, he said and clapped his hands, “The heart must have been destroyed.” They might have not been able to recruit Hyde, but he had still done a great service to them, nonetheless.

Very slowly the group scattered. Bulstrode marched back to his desk. Slowly sitting down he ordered the few papers that had been scattered on it. Hanningan asked: “What are we going to do now? The Heart seems to be destroyed.” “Indeed”, responded Bulstrode. He caught himself being surprisingly happy. “And this means Tenebrae has got a major setback. We now have to keep our focus on dear Robert Jekyll.”

“Why?”, asked Sackler in surprise. He leaned himself against the wall. “I thought, this is over. Robert Jekyll does not provide a threat. And I thought, you promised him, you were going to leave him alone.”

Bulstrode laughed.  _ Please, Sackler. Sometimes your naivete astounds me. _ Folding his hands, the chief responded: “Mr. Sackler, I said what I had to do to keep myself out of trouble. And I do not mean to disturb him in any way. I simply say that we have to keep an eye on him. Not only because he is a monster, but also because I believe, Dance will not just leave him alone.”

He rose and walked to the map on which he had pinned several connections he had spotted between the Jekylls and Tenebrae. Looking at the photo of Captain Dance, Bulstrode explained: “Dance is not an imbecile. He will want his revenge. But moreover he is the type of person that will have a plan B in case things do not turn out the way he expects them to be. And if he does not have a plan B then someone of Tenebrae will clearly be making one.”

~Jekyll & Hyde~

Power could come in many forms. If you had a lot of money you could lean to, you got power for money is a very powerful tool. If you had an opinion, meaning you could give a voice, that also gave you power as people united could be very powerful too. But what gave you most power, was information.

Just as MIO had its power through a complex set that supplied them with information, the local newspaper,  _ Daily Truth _ , also had this kind of power. The owner of it, Lord Prothero, could not show this enough. The building which held the heart of the  _ Daily Truth _ was large, white and small windows scattered over its marvel walls like eyes.

In this building however, in the ninth floor, a power struggle took place. In a large, glamorous room with fancy furniture, wooden cupboards, velvet carpets and chandeliers several bandits stood at the wall and watched their boss. They all looked similar. Cloddy, butcher-like figures with brute faces, black, cheap clothing and a black eye patch.

The three figures they watched stuck out like sore thumbs. One of them was a delicate woman, wearing a green, thick dress with a black fur scarf and a small hat. Her blue eyes glittered as the short haired, brown lady watched the other man, pacing up and down.

Beside her stood a grey haired, slender, yet sore looking Prothero who angry clutched his hands together. He was wearing a blue suit and clean, black shoes. His whole body language tried to show authority and power, but annoyance and impatience marked every movement.

The man they were watching was taller then anyone in the room. He had a handsome face, dark, smooth hair, a small mustache, strict eyes and wore a brown uniform and leather gloves. He kept pacing up and down and his glance showed disapproval and anger.

“This is bad.” Silas was probably summing up what everyone thought in the room. The leader of the bandits swallowed nervously. Prothero chewed on his fingernails. Fedora shifted her weight. No one dared to approach Dance, who kept walking around in circles, faster and faster. They could sense his anger. It happened rarely that the senior officer lost his composer. But when he did, he had a very clear reason to do so.

Dance cursed under his breath. Every now and then he would stopp and spin around, trashing objects with his bare fist. Whenever he did this, Prothero would flinch and mumble something about expensive furniture. However broken furniture was the least of Dance's worry.

Hyde had destroyed the Calyx! He had ruined all their plans. The effort of years, decades even, was turned into nothing. This was the second time a member of the Jekyll family had crossed Tenebrae. Dance crunched his teeth as he thought about Louis Hyde. Robert's father had worked several years faithfully for Tenebrae, but then out of nowhere he had changed his mind. Not only had he given birth to two offsprings, no he also had tried to kill Dance. Disloyalty. It was a thorn in the flesh of Tenebrae. They could not have disloyalty. It was either serve Tenebrae or die.

And now because of the destroyed heart, Lord Trash was still imprisoned. How were they going to set the ancient god free now? Dance had no idea. He only saw Hyde's face in his mind and the smashed, bleeding heart. It made him scream. Hyde would pay for this! He would regret not joining Tenebrae.

“My love.” Fedora carefully approached him and laid a hand on his shoulder. Dance flinched at her tender touch and yerked his head around. The Incubus flashed in his gaze and blue mist seemed to float out of his nostrils as he barked: “What?”

The malicious lady merely nodded towards the only object in the room that was not owned by the  _ Daily Truth _ . It was a large, oval figure, hidden under a carpet. This figure now glowed and softly vibrated. Almost like a ringing telephone.

_ No! Why now? _ Of course such news traveled faster then words. Captain Dance hesitated. He turned around to look at Silas and his men. “Out”, he commanded, “All of you! I'd like to be left alone.” The bandits seemed to be more then happy to do that. They hurried out of the room. The door slammed behind them.

Only Prothero remained in the room. With a sly, sneaky smirk, he asked: “What is it?” Fedora responded coldly: “Do not act like you have any right to know this, Prothero. You better leave as well.” “Wasn't I suppose to be your equal?”, snarled Prothero, “You promised me power, when I help you. Where is it? Or shall I kick you out on the street? This building is mine you are residing in.”

_ Oh, this arrogant fool! _ He did not had the patience for him today. Dance slowly approached Prothero. Grabbing him by his collar with one hand, he lifted him upwards. Calmly looking into the newspaper owner's panting face, the undead man responded: “You want power? I shall show you power if you do not leave now! You are not one of us, Prothero. You are nothing more then a host and collaborator towards Tenebrae. And as such it is best to keep you as uninformed as possible. After all your simple brain could not handle what we discuss.”

Dropping him like a sack of potatos, Dance said once more: “Leave.” Prothero rubbed his neck and corrected his tie. Pale like a ghost, he hurried out of the room. Only when he was alone with Fedora, did his composer leave him again. His shoulders sank and his gaze showed disapproval.

Looking towards the object which kept vibrating and glowing, he buried his face in his hands. “Why does she have to call me now?” Fedora had taken a seat on a chair. She was playing with the necklace she was wearing. A soft smile curled her lips. “You will have to face her eventually, darling”, she whispered kindly, “The longer you keep her waiting, the worse it will get.”

Dance groaned and stood up, shaking his head. Of course Fedora was right! He simply was not in the mood to get thorn to pieces by Keres. But he would have to justify his acts. He just wanted to have some time alone to calm down.

Dance marched towards the object. Grabbing the carpet with a hand, he revealed a large mirror with a swift jerk. It kept glowing and the frame vibrated. It was a magical mirror, designed for communication. Whoever wanted to talk with someone, wrote the person's name with blood on the glass and the other person would have to answer the call.

Dance simply lifted a hand towards Fedora. “Darling, could you do me the honour please?” He felt her slender hands remove one of his gloves. The Erinys took her necklace and used its edge to make a deep cut into his palm.

Dance hissed under his breath as red blood slowly ran out of the wound. Lifting two fingers he started to draw Tenebrae's symbol on the glass: A cross with two vertical lines. He then pressed the bleeding hand over his own face in the mirror.

The mirror stopped vibrating. It glowed stronger and stronger, absorbing Dance's blood in the process. The undead man stepped back and tried to prepare himself for the demon he was about to encounter. When the glow faded away, his reflection was replaced with the figure of an Asian woman.

She had a very fair, almost pearl like skin, grey eyes and black hair. Her dress was silvery and silky and revealed much skin. The gaze with which she eyed Dance was cold and deadly. Her facial features might seem blank, but the Captain could sense her disapproval like a shadow on his skin.

“I am very disappointed in you, Dance.” Keres hardly moved her lips as she hissed these words. “We had the heart. We had the power to open the Calyx. And then your decision to open it in the Jekyll's house ruined our work!”

Dance tried to defend himself: “It was not me who destroyed the heart. It was Hyde. You should blame him, not me. I simply thought...” “You did not thought anything!” Keres cut him short. Her voice had hardly risen, but her teeth had sharpened briefly when she had said those words. “You let your emotions get the better off you, Dance. You know our first law: The organization comes first, personal desires later. It is just like what you did with Louis Hyde. Your own desire for revenge ruined the work of decades.”

Dance opened his mouth, trying to say anything. But then he closed it again. Keres of course was right. How foolish of him to ignore the very first rule in Tenebrae! The Captain was glad only Fedora saw him now. He hated displaying weaknesses and Keres was one of the very few members in Tenebrae that could command him around. No wonder the senior officers had elected her matriarch all those centuries ago.

“This is a mistake that cannot be undone that easily, Dance”, whispered Keres. “I know.” Dance carefully kneaded his hat. “I promise it won't happen again.” The death spirit responded: “Being sorry won't bring Lord Trash back, Dance.”

She narrowed her grey steel eyes. “I am going to give you one last chance.” Dance felt the air leaving his lounges all of a sudden as he sighted in relief. His muscles loosened. “Thanks, Keres”, he panted, “I knew, you could not be bad for too long. After all I know have powers that make me very valuable for Tenebrae.”

Keres' face did not brightened up. Unimpressed she responded: “Do not be smug about that. You have to remember: An Incubus only needs a body to exist. Your free will and personality are not relevant for it. And you know that I can take these things away from you.” As if she wanted to undermine her statement, she snapped her fingers.

Dance gulped. Of course Keres was right. She was a death spirit and the reason he actually stood before her. While the Captain transformed his opponents into the skeleton Vetalas who were more like dogs towards their master, Keres was capable of literally bringing someone back from the death with their personality and free will. She had recreated him decades ago.

“I am sorry, Keres.” Captain Dance lowered his head in a bow. “It was not my intention to question your authority. What is it you ask me to do?” Keres responded: “There is a book, hidden in a house. It contains instructions on how to break the gateway down. We need this book.”

Dance strengthened his shoulders and placed his cap back on his head. “I shall give orders for this immediately and report to you when we are done.” Her smile could make blood run cold. “No, Dance”, responded Keres, “I shall supervise this in person. Give me your hand.”

_ No! Not this. _ Dance knew what Keres was about to do. He asked: “Is this supervision really necessary?” “It is”, she stated coldly, “I won't accept any more failure from you, Captain Dance. Give me your hand. Do as I say.”

Fedora breathed: “No!” Dance sighted and gave her a warning look. She should not try to interfere. Slowly removing his leather glow, the undead man lifted a hand and placed it on the glass of the mirror. He knew that Keres was doing the same thing on the opposite side. As soon as they did this, a sharp pain ran through Dance's wrist straight into his body.

The undead man let out a terrible, monstrous scream and buckled over.  _ Breath, Dance, breath. _ But he could only feel this immense cold as if death was staring down on his neck. His body seemed to turn numb. From the corner of his eyes, he felt Fedora's arms, catching him as he fell over. “My love!” The Eryins eyed him with fear.

Dance felt the bond tighten as Keres placed a split part of her in his own shadow. Panting he looked at the death spirit. The pearl skinned woman said: “There will be no mistakes, Dance.” And the mirror turned clear and he only saw his own reflection in it, gasping for air, sweat in his face.

“Darling, are you alright?” Fedora whipped with a handkerchief over his forehead. Dance pushed her aside. Coming on his feet, he commanded: “Get Silas and his men here at once. We must act immediately. Like Keres said: Mistakes won't be tolerated.”


	4. Lanyon

**Prelude**

Another terrible scream reached his ears. The Jekyll's house seemed to be empty. Only a young, black haired man was sitting in a chair. Garson flinched as the shout echoed through the building. Several days had passed and something had changed.

Henry Jekyll would lock himself up for days in his laboratory. He refused to see anyone or to speak to anyone. Garson had kept sending people away with the excuse the dear Doctor was not feeling well. Of course this lie couldn't be farther from the truth.

Garson knew what was going on. Doctor Henry Jekyll was fighting against Edward Hyde. His inner demon had become more and more powerful these days. After the murder of Sir Danvis Carrew screamed in the papers, Henry had realized that he had gone too far. And now he tried something that might be impossible: Doctor Jekyll tried to make the antidote that would destroy Hyde completely.

 _I have to see if he is alright._ Garson disapproved of everything Jekyll did as Hyde and that he had created this potion in the first place, but he was his assistant. It was his duty to check on his master. The young man stood up and walked towards the lab. The heavy door was locked and the screams echoed through its massive wood.

Garson knocked against it. “Doctor Jekyll!”, he called, “Doctor Jekyll, is everything alright in there?” A whimpering, groaning sound was the answer. “Leave me alone.” Edward Hyde. His voice had this bestial growl, but right now he sounded incredibly weak. “I am alright.”

“Edward, you are lieing”, responded Garson. Panic prickled in his neck and sweat danced on his forehead. He shook the door's knob, which refused to open. “What is going on?” The door opened briefly. Edward stared at him. He was a small, ugly man with tousled hair and an uncombed beard.

His cyan eyes flashed and he bared his teeth. Garson backed away. “There!”, snapped Edward Hyde and dropped a crunched letter in front of his assistant's feet. He picked it up. Unfolding the letter, Garson read: _Dear Garson. I am afraid the medicals you brought me are useless. I request that you begin your search for the right chemical with greater precision. Ask every chemist in London if you must. I cannot stress enough how important this is for me. FOR GOD'S SAKE! Find me some of the OLD stuff! Doctor Henry Jekyll_

~Jekyll & Hyde~

The laboratory was laying underneath the earth. It was a large, great hall with bricked walls on one side and rough stone on the other. Old lamps send orange rays on tables and shelves. Dust laid on glass bottles, boxes, thermometers, Erlenmeyer flasks and test tubes. However the devices that stood on the table looked rather clean.

Robert Jekyll was standing in front of the table. His eyes were rested on several test tubes, which he had filled with a green liquid. His grandfather's original potion. Green for Jekyll and red for Hyde. Robert carefully took a drop with a pipet and placed it under his microscope. His eye squinted as he eyed the liquid underneath it.

 _There has to be a way to recreate Henry's old potion._ Robert knew that it was made out of monocane and several other ingredients. But what had been these ingredients and how much had Henry used? And most off all, was there a way for Robert to recreate the potion and maybe make it even more stable?

For Robert it was the only option he saw right now. He was a Doctor and had studied biochemistry and medicine. He knew what certain chemicals could numb pain, what could be done to sew wounds and what certain poisons did to human bodies. So he should be able to find a formula that would maybe destroy Hyde completely or at least allow Robert to suppress him effectively with minimal effort.

 _Come on. What is your secret?_ Robert had poured a bit of the green potion in a small bottle. Eying it, he narrowed his eyes. His grandfather surely had kept notes on how he created that potion. But where were those notes? Robert would give anything to find them. _What is needed to make me change from Jekyll to Hyde?_

It clearly was the monocane, but how much of it was needed? Also how did it work with the other ingredients in the potion? Reports had said that Edward looked different from Henry. Then why was it not the same with him? Robert knew that he and Hyde looked identical, apart from a cyan glow in his alter ego's eyes and stronger veins. It was in his blood, but how did it worked? There was so much Robert still did not understand.

“What are you doing there, boy?” Robert placed the bottle down and looked up. Garson was standing on the metallic veranda that allowed them an overview of the lab. “I am trying to learn more about the green potion”, responded Robert who watched the old man, walking down the stairs, “I need to understand how it works. To rid myself of Hyde.”

“Didn't we had this discussion already, Robert?”, grunted Garson and stopped before the table. He folded his arms. “The only way to get rid of a Hyde is to kill a Jekyll and I doubt you want to commit suicide like Henry did. Hyde is in your blood. You cannot rid yourself of that. It is ancient.”

 _Listen to you! You sound like Olalla._ Robert furrowed his brows. He cleaned his hands with a napkin that was laying around. “I know”, he responded, “But there has to be a better way to get control over Hyde. I cannot risk him doing more damage than is already done.” Garson sighted. “I told you, boy”, he grumbled, “No one blames you! So why do you keep letting this guilt getting to you?”

Robert sat down on a chair. “Tell me, Garson”, he said, “Did Henry Jekyll ever felt guilt for his actions? Did he ever tried to control Hyde?” Garson's face eclipsed. He folded his arms. “I did not want to tell you this, Robert”, the old man said, “But yes, Jekyll later tried to control Hyde.” His gaze wandered off as if he was traveling back in time.

When Garson continued his tale, he was speaking much slower as if he caught the words from past's fabric: “After Sir Danvis Carrew was murdered, Henry realized that Hyde had gone too far. Sure, Edward might have had his reasons, but Jekyll realized that he was putting society at risk. After all Hyde knew no consequences or any moral value.” _I can relate to that._ Robert nodded slowly. “Go on”, he asked.

“Well, Henry realized that he had to choose his better self.” Garson shifted his weight on the chair. “He started to lock himself up in his lab, trying to find the right poison to destroy Hyde. He ordered me to let no one in, not even his closest friends. To deep was the fear of Hyde surfacing. I did not get involved that much in this potion making like I did it with the other two. But I remember Henry giving me notes, stating that the chemicals I brought him were useless. I had to search through every chemistry in London.”

Garson sighted. “In the end it was all in vain. Jekyll poisoned himself as he saw no other way. He thought if he died, then Hyde would die with him and disappear from the face of the world.” He laughed hoarsely and nodded towards Robert. “We all saw how well that turned out.”

Robert laughed weakly. “Maybe I can succeed where he failed”, he suggested, “Make a better potion. A fresh potion.” Garson's glance turned serious. He stood up and patted the young man's shoulder. “I doubt that, boy”, he responded, “Hyde is part of who you are. And I don't want you to commit suicide, because you see no other way. Do you hear me? Don't let that guilt get to you so much.”

Robert looked up at him. “I promise, I will be careful”, he clarified, “I am just worried. These monocane sprays won't be full forever.” He lifted one of the sprayers. “What do I do when they are empty? I don't have Renata's willpower to fight Hyde down when he surfaces. Without my spray or the green potion, I will become a monster.”

Fear painted itself over his face as he said these last words. “And I don't want that, Garson”, he whispered and despair laid in his glance, “I thought I could finally accept Hyde as a part of me, but now… I fear, I don't have the power to do it. Not after Maggie's death. It just feels wrong to accept him now.”

Garson's mouth turned down. He looked at the green potion and back at Robert. Care and pity laid in his gaze. The old man knew that Robert was not like his grandfather and seeing him suffer so much, broke his heart. “Come on, boy”, Garson suddenly said and stood up, “I may not be able to help you with that green potion, but I might be able to get monocane for you. Put your cloak on, Robert. There is someone you should meet.”

~Jekyll & Hyde~

Garson lead Robert to a small house near the market's street. It was black and had a cheap, brown, leather canopy. The windows were dim and dark. Robert could make out the silhouettes of shelves through the glass, but that was not saying much. Where were they? Whom was he about to meet?

Robert flinched as a water drop from the canopy splashed in his neck. He slowly followed Garson into the building. A scent of dried herbs, dusty bottles and chemicals welcomed them. On the shelves Robert spotted bottles, boxes and tubes. _This is a pharmacy._ Curiously Robert looked around. The place was clean, although the dark shelves suggested otherwise. The young Doctor picked up small bandages and bottles filled with pills against fever.

“What are we doing here?” Turning around, he spotted Garson who walked towards the sales counter. There was a small bell on it. Garson tipped against it. No sound could be heard. The old man repeated the movement several times. Still no sound. Groaning, he rolled his eyes and shouted in the labyrinth of shelves: “Lanyon, get your bloody backside here! You have costumers and your bloody bell is not working! Again.”

Robert heard a swift movement and saw a ladder on wheels, swooping through the hallway of shelves, stopping before the counter. On it stood a man with curly, brown hair and freckles around his nose. He was wearing a black tailcoat and in combination with the white blouse and his tallness this gave him the appearance of a penguin who had swallowed a stick.

“Ah, Garson”, Lanyon said cheerfully, “It has been a while since I saw you the last time. Do your knees make problems again?” Garson took off his small hat. “No”, the old man responded, “My knees are perfectly fine. Here is someone, I'd like you to meet.” Grabbing Robert by his sleeve, he pushed him towards the counter. “This is Doctor Robert Jekyll.”

Lanyon laid his amber eyes on Robert. He scanned him from top to bottom. Finally a curious smile cracked upon his lips. “Ah, _Jekyll_. I wondered when you would show up here.” Robert was confused. Had the man expecting him? But how? He had just met him!

Robert turned around to Garson. “Garson, what is this about?”, he asked, “Who is this man? And why is he acting like he knows me?” While the penguin climbed down his ladder, Garson explained: “Robert, this is Doctor Thomas Lanyon. He is a friend of mine.”

Thomas stopped and offered Robert his hand. He had a childlike smile on his face and eyes full of curiousity. “I have been dreaming about the day when I would finally meet you, Robert.” Robert hesitated, before he shook Lanyon's hand, while he asked: “How do you know me? And why are you excited about meeting me?”

“Well, I know what you are”, responded Thomas, “And when do you get the chance to meet a man, who actually is two men?” _This cheerful guy is getting really creepy._ Robert felt Hyde's suspicion rose in him. He had to agree on this. How did Lanyon know about him? The young Doctor was not sure what to think about such friendliness. It confused him.

“That still does not explain how you know me”, responded Robert. Lanyon lifted his hands. “Okay, I admit it”, he stated, “I don't know you in person. But my grandfather knew Henry Jekyll.” This came unexpected. Robert's eyes widened. Another person, who somehow stood in contact with his cursed grandfather. “They did?”, repeated Robert.

Lanyon turned his head and nodded towards a pale portrait which showed a small man with curly, brown hair, a long nose and a pair of glasses on its back. “Hastie Lanyon”, explained Thomas, “and Henry Jekyll were the best of friends. However then your grandfather started to work on this crazy theory of good and evil and two personalities in the human mind. Hastie disagreed with this a lot. According to him, people were either born good or born bad. Simple as that. The idea that any ordinary man could become a monster terrified him.”

Robert asked: “But how do you know about what I am? You said it yourself. Two humans in one body. Which means you know that I change.” _Scream it on the streets, you moron!_ Robert's eyes flashed cyan. He grunted in shock and took out his monocane spray. Hyde really was getting to him. Inhaling two deep gusts of the drug, Robert calmed down, shooing his inner demon away.

Lanyon watched this all with great interest. It was a different kind of interest then Dance or Bulstrode showed in him. There was no desire for award in it, but the curiousity of a child, combined with the wisdom of a man.

Lanyon explained with a shake of the head: “My grandfather should discover Henry's secret. He did not took it well. You see, after the murder of Danvis Carrew the police hunted Edward Hyde. One night Hastie became a letter from Henry, ordering him to bring him a drawer with certain ingredients. He was supposed to meet with a friend of Jekyll at midnight.”

~Jekyll & Hyde~

The doorbell rang. Hastie flinched and looked up towards his clock. 12 pm. This friend of Henry was punctual. Standing up from his seat, the Doctor walked across the room and opened the door. In the fine dizzle of the rain stood a hooded figure. Glowing eyes glared at Hastie.

“You come from Doctor Jekyll?”, asked Lanyon. “Yes”, the person growled, his voice muffled by the scarf. “Well, then come on in then.” Stepping aside, Hastie watched the other one enter. As soon as the Doctor closed the door, the other man threw of his scarf and cloak, revealing a small, ugly man with brown hair and an uncombed beard. Bushy eyebrows covered his cyan gaze partly.

Hastie gasped in shock. He recognized the man immediately. “Edward Hyde!”, he called in outrage. How could this man come from Henry? Was his friend alright? And what would make the outstanding Doctor be friend with such a hideous monster?

The mad man chuckled and bowed. “At your service, Doctor Lanyon.” A smug grin played around his lips. “And I would not call the police”, hissed Edward, “Not if you care about your friend Henry Jekyll.” _What have you done with him?_ Hastie's eyes widened in panic. “Where is Henry?”, he demanded to know angrily, “If you have done anything to him. If you have harmed him in any way...”

Edward lifted his hand. “Doctor Jekyll is safe and sound”, he assured Lanyon, “Did you bring the drawer?” “Yes”, responded Hastie, “It was right where Henry described it.” Edward Hyde grunted in joy and snapped the drawer. It was containing a glass bottle and a can, filled with a red liquid. “Now watch carefully, Lanyon. I shall show you something that will reverse everything about the human mind as you knew it.”

Hastie responded: “I did not come here to witness any magic trick. But fine, if it is in the name of science, go on with it.” Hyde grinned and opened the can. He slowly poured a substance from the glass bottle into it. There was a hissing sound and blisters, and the red liquid turned green. Edward toasted towards Lanyon, before he gulped the strange potion down.

There was a hoarse cry and Hyde dropped the glass. It shattered on the floor. Hastie's eyes widened in panic and he backed away from the coughing man. Edward's eyes rolled in their caves and he shuddered. Fear clutched Lanyon's heart and he chewed on his nails as he saw the mad man buckle over.

Edward's face deformed and his hair became cleaner. He grew and the clothes ripped apart. Panting the man landed on the floor. After a few seconds it was over and he stood up. However it was not Edward who looked at Hastie with sad, green, worried eyes. Lanyon hit his forehead with his hand. “Henry Jekyll!”, he shouted, “Oh my god, Henry!”

~Jekyll & Hyde~

Robert's eyes widened. “Edward transformed himself right before Lanyon into Henry”, he whispered, “But that is insane.” Thomas Lanyon responded: “You cannot believe how insane it was for my grandfather. As Edward said, it turned everything as Hastie knew it upside down. My grandfather became very, very ill after this. He refused to talk to anyone about the reason for his disease. Lanyon died a few weeks after this incident. He simply could not cope with what he had found out.”

“That is dreadful”, said Robert. He took of his hat and clutched it towards his chest, “I am very sorry for your grandfather.” Lanyon responded: “It happened a long time ago, Robert. Well, Hastie at least wrote down what he had witnessed and every son of the Lanyon family learns about this tragedy when he takes this pharmacy as his own.”

“This reminds me”, called Robert, “Garson, why did you introduced me to Lanyon? I mean, it is good that I now know another aspect of my family's history, but didn't you say he could help me somehow?” Lanyon smiled. “I can indeed help you. You are using monocane to change, right?”

“Eh, yeah, right”, stammered Robert, “Why does this matter to you?” He squinted his eyes in surprise as Thomas spread his arms and smiled proudly. “Because this is the only pharmacy in London that delivers monocane. In small dosis Doctors use it as a pain killer. However you probably need it because of Hyde.”

 _Wait a second!_ Robert's face brightened when he understood. His problem might be solved. If he had enough monocane, he could control Hyde and keep him down. “You could really do this for me?”, he asked. “Of course.” Lanyon clapped his hands. “Tell me how much you need and you will get it.”

Robert ordered six bottles that would be delivered in the afternoon. As soon as he and Garson stepped out of the pharmacy, the old man asked: “So, boy, are you happy now?” Robert took him by his shoulders. His face beamed with delight. “Garson”, Robert called, “You are a bloody genius!”


	5. An unexpected Visitor

**Prelude**

Robert carefully placed a bottle of the green potion in his bag. He picked up the monocane sprayer and shook it, checking if enough was in it. It felt comfortably heavy in his grip and the thought that he still had six more glass bottles full of liquid monocane in his laboratory lightened his mood.

A few days had passed and Robert had kept experimenting with his grandfather's old potions but had not become any smarter. Maybe it was because the lab had such a dim light that it was hard to see things. If Robert could separate the substances that made these potions, it would be much easier.

Garson had already criticized him for working with the stuff. After all, he now had enough monocane to keep Hyde at bay for weeks at a time. Still, Robert's curiosity had gotten the better of him. He was thrilled by the idea of learning more about the potion and its workings. And maybe if he could not find them, someone else could.

Robert placed the sprayer in his pocket. Turning around, he faced himself in the mirror. A young man with brown eyes, dark, curly hair and a smooth, nice face. Robert carefully fastened his tie and turned his sleeves inside out. Comfortable with the result, he took his bag when steps came down the stairs.

“Where are you going, Robert?” Ravi jumped down the last few steps. He was wearing a simple pullover and a trouser. His brown eyes sparkled with curiosity. Robert explained: “I go and visit Lily.” His brother lifted a brow. “Are you sure this is wise? I mean, she works for MIO. You said it yourself. Can you trust her?”

Robert admitted: “I do not know whom I can trust anymore, Ravi. However I know that I need the help of another scientist. Lily has studied biochemistry so I guess that she is my best shot.” _You still love her_ , snarled Hyde inside of him, _How can you love her? She is a traitor._ Robert lowered his gaze. _She differs from Bulstrode. And that is good enough for me._

Robert softly patted Ravi's shoulder. “Do not worry”, he responded, “I will be careful.” Placing his hat on his head, he walked towards the door. Smiling back at his little brother, he said: “I see you later, Ravi.”

~Jekyll & Hyde~

The house in which Lily lived was white and large. It laid in a street with similar houses, all in a fancy and elegant style. An avenue of oak trees. Their leaves rustled in the wind. Robert cautiously strolled across the street towards Lily's house. As usual he had the feeling of being watched. Either MIO or Tenebrae. Probably MIO. Angrily dismissing the prickling nervousity in his neck, Robert rang the doorbell.

Lily opened the door and greeted him in the same blue velvet dress in which he had first met her. Her raven black hair was tied up and her cheeks had just the right tint of pink. Crimson red lips pulled into a smile, revealed her clean teeth. Robert still felt a shadow of his former love for Lily, but the reveal that she worked with MIO all the time had destroyed most of it.

“Robert!”, called Lily in surprise, “I did not expect you to be here. But please, come in.” Her surprise was not faked. Just like the joy in her eyes. She really seemed to be happy to see him. Robert felt a sharp sting of shame and pity in him as he entered the house.

Lily closed the door. “I did not thought I would see you again”, she admitted and folded her hands, “Not after you-know-what.” She dropped her head and sighted. Robert responded: “I hope you do not mind that I withdraw my proposal.” “Not at all.” He suspired in relief. “Then I can set my mind at rest”, Robert said, “But we still can be friends, can't we?”

“Of course we can.” Lily softly took his hand and guided him to the small living room. “However you understand that I will keep doing my job. Now no longer as a real spy but as a messenger.” Robert sighted. Of course. He could not ask from Lily to stop what she was paid to do. It only reminded him that he had to be more careful and aware around her.

Taking a seat on the couch, Robert listened to Lily as she asked: “But what brings you here?” “I need your help”, admitted the young Doctor, “You see, I have been trieing to analyze my grandfather's potion to recreate it, but I failed sadly. You studied biochemistry so I thought if you take a look at it, maybe you will have more success then I do.”

Lily smiled brightly. “You couldn't have asked for a better person, Robert”, she responded and stood up. “Why?”, asked Robert. The fair lady waved a finger. “Follow me. I'd like to show you something.” _Now what is this about?_ Standing up, Robert followed Lily. They left the living room and entered a lift.

It was encased in green and blue. Robert asked: “Where are we going? What are you plotting?” They both stood in this small lift, bodies only inches away from one another. Robert felt Hyde resurfacing in an attempt to either harm Lily or just kiss her. Shuddering he grabbed his sprayer and inhaled two deep gusts of monocane, relaxing when it took effort.

Lily softly laid a finger on his lips and whispered: “Schhh. I won't say. I don't want to ruin the surprise for you.” The lift stopped and the grid opened. Lily stepped through it and Robert followed. He clutched his hat to his chest and looked around in awe. Lamps gave an orange light on a small hall. On tables stood several devices similar to those in his lab. People in white work coats walked around, holding bottles and cups, full of strange substances that fumed and bubbled.

On the opposite side of the room Robert spotted two large shelves that were filled with boxes, bottles and glasses, labeled with words like _Sleeping Pills_ , _Invisible Ink_ , _Vampire Blood_ , _Draught of Living Death_ and _Swindslime_. The workers looked up and stopped their work when Lily walked into the middle.

Turning around, the woman spread her arms. Another smile, proud like a flower seller, presenting her best roses. “Robert”, called Lily, “Welcome to the Chemistry Department of the MIO.” He blinked. Robert had never expected that the MIO had sub departments. And leave alone that Lily worked in one of them. _This girl really is full of surprises._

“Ehm, what exactly do you do?”, asked Robert. Lily explained: “As Head of the Chemistry Department it is mine and Brannigan's task to analyze and create chemical wonder weapons, magic bullets if you say so.” Her smile grew as she hold a hand. “If you give me the red and the green potion, I can help you extract what substances and ingredients were used in them.”

Robert furrowed his brow. He reached into his pocket and took out the green and red potion. Looking at it, he whispered: “How can I know that you won't give your information to Bulstrode straight away?” Lily sighted. “I don't ask you as an agent, but as a friend”, she responded softly, “You need help. You said it yourself. Let me help you, Robert.”

Reluctantly Robert gave her the bottles. “Thanks for trusting me”, Lily whispered and kissed him briefly on the cheek, “I will inform you at once if I find something out.”

~Jekyll & Hyde~

Robert woke up in the middle of the night. He did not know what had woken him. It could not be Hyde. The Doctor had used an extra dosis of monocane in the evening to prevent Hyde from interfering with his sleep in any way. So if Hyde had not woken him, what else could it have been?

Sitting there, he stared in the darkness, trying to figure out what had woken him up. The moon shone through his window and the curtain softly moved in the brief gust of wind. Robert did not see anything extraordinary. _Maybe I am getting paranoid._ Shaking his head, he laid down to get some sleep when a sudden noise woke him once again and he sat straight in bed.

A growl. He had not misheard himself. There was a low growl coming from underneath the floorboard. Robert slowly stood up and blinked. _What is that?_ His bedroom laid straight over the laboratory, so whatever produced such a sound must be down there.

Cautiously Robert took a lantern and slowly climbed out of bed. Slipping into his cloak, lamp in hand, he made his way downstairs. The lab door was closed tight. What could be hiding behind it? And how did whatever it was got in there in the first place? The growl repeated itself. It sounded like the snark of an animal, the barking of a dog.

Robert immediately got reminded of Renata's inner demon. The Black Dog. A monstrous beast with sheer strength and power. Whatever was in his lab it definitely was not friendly. Looking around, Robert took Garson's walking stick with him. It was made out of heavy wood and be a good protection. And even if that thing attacked him, he still had Hyde as a backup although Robert hated to admit that.

Opening the door, Robert slowly entered the lab. It was dark and he could see the silhouettes of shelves and his instruments. The young Doctor heard something move down on the floor. Moving as silently as possible, Robert stepped forwards and turned on the lights. They came to live with a golden glimmer and Robert could see the intruder next to his experiment desk.

It was a…man dog? Dog man? Robert was not sure. The monster was walking on all fours, had a dense body with slender, muscular legs. Fur covered his back and the legs which ended in the paws of a dog. However its chest was naked skin just like neck and head. The head was that of a bald man with a flat nose, swollen lips and small, grey eyes.

The thing was moving near his experiment desk, sniffing. “Hey!”, shouted Robert angrily. The monster would only damage things. He was very overprotective when it came to his experiments. Jerking its head around, the man dog glared at Robert and bared its teeth with a snarl. From his last encounters with monsters Robert made only one assumption: The dog would pounce at him, trying to kill him.

Therefore the next situation confused the heck out of Robert. Crossing its front legs, the man dog lowered its head and bowed. “Greetings to you, man within a man”, it snarled. _What?_ Robert's jaw dropped and his brows wandered up. What the heck was this about? Not only did this monster bow to him, no it also talked in perfect English! Well, it might have a snarling undertone in its voice, but it was English nonetheless.

It took Robert five seconds to get over his confusion. Shaking his head, he asked: “You know what I am?” “Yes”, responded the dog with a snarky smile, “I know what you are, all powerful one. And I know a lot more.” Another weird title. Robert furrowed his brow in confusion. He overplayed it by asking: “Who are you and what are you doing in my lab?”

“I need your help, Doctor Jekyll.” The dog moved sideways and now Robert saw that it was hobbling. No wonder it had not stroke yet! There was a large wound over his left hind leg. It could hardly stand on all three legs! Robert wondered what had caused the wound. Maybe a barbed wire? He knew they could create nasty gaps in flesh.

“I see”, acknowledged Robert and nodded towards the wound, “But what do you mean by you know more?” The man dog hackled. It tried to disburden its bad leg. “I know the past, present and future”, it barked, “I can give you some very important information, man within a man. If you help me in exchange.”

 _This could be a trick!_ Robert remained cautious. He knew most monsters seaked to destroy him. Especially those who worked for Tenebrae. How did he know this was not a trap? “How can I say that you won't tear me apart once I helped you?”, asked Robert, “Besides how can I tell that you do not just lie?”

The monster laughed. “I am a Harbinger!”, it explained, “It is against my nature to lie. So, do you want these information or not? Besides I can assure you, I am no match towards Hyde's power.” Robert responded: “If I cure you, you will tell me what you know and you won't harm me? Can you give me your word on that?”

The Harbinger bowed again. “You shall have my word, man within a man. I won't harm you and tell you what you desire to know. After you cured me.” It stood up again and wiggled its tail. “So”, the monster barked, “Do we got ourselves a deal?” _Please, dear God, tell me that I won't regret this!_ Robert slowly placed the walking stick away. “We have got a deal”, he responded.

Climbing down the stair, he ordered: “Get away from my experiment desk and lay down, so you are comfortable. This will take some time.” The Harbinger hissed under its breath as it hopped away from the desk and laid down with a groan.

Robert slowly walked through his laboratory and gathered the things he would need to cure the monster. Bandages, swabs, syringe, needle, thread, a bucket of water and a rag. He stopped before the Harbinger who stretched its leg towards him. The wound was partly covered in dirt; dust and blood stuck in the fur.

Dipping the rag into the bucket, Robert started to clean the wound. He could see the Harbinger grimace in pain. “I am trying to be as gentle as I can”, whispered Robert. No matter who was his patient, he would always be a doctor towards them first. Even if they happened to be a monster.

Silence drowned the lab as Robert kept cleaning the wound. He dropped the rag in the bucket. The water was red from the animal's blood. The Harbinger had gotten lucky. The wound may be long, but it was not very deep and it looked fresh enough to have happened within the six hour period in which sewing was allowed.

 _Here comes the fun part._ Robert took the syringe and clicked against it with his finger. He knew most people hated syringes. Blimey, the children he had injected on his first day at work had shown discomfort towards the syringe. So it was clear the Harbinger would not be any different.

Bending forwards, the Doctor started to interject the wound. As soon as the needle touched the raw flesh, the Harbinger roared and kicked forwards. His paw hit the bucket which fell down and splashed the red water all over Robert's pants.

Gasping in shock and anger, the Doctor hissed: “You need to stay still! Unless you prefer feeling every stitch of the needle.” Cyan glowed in his eyes briefly and the Harbinger ducked down. “I am sorry”, he growled and allowed Robert to continue his work. During the remaining interjection and the sewing process he remained quiet, only flinched shortly from time to time.

Finally Robert placed two strings of sticky tape on the white bandage and stood up. The Harbinger's leg was covered in a white bandage that went up towards its hip. Standing up, the monster tested its leg, before it sniffed at the bandage in curiosity. “You will have to keep it on for at least two weeks. I hope the wound heals without any infection. I used self-disruptive threads. They will disappear once the wound has healed.”

Robert crossed his arms. “Alright”, he stated, “I did what you asked me to do. Now you tell me what you know.” The Harbinger looked at Robert. It's snarling, bellowing voice filled the Doctor's ears as it recited: “Two become one. Desire becomes death. The daughter denies the father. And the family's curse will block the gate.”

Robert lifted his brow in confusion. “What is that suppose to mean?”, he stammered. The Harbinger laughed. “I am afraid, man within a man, it is not my permission to explain”, it responded and slowly walked towards the sink which was pushed aside, showing the tunnel. Here it stopped and turned around. “Maybe you should just let the events unfold. They will explain everything.” And before Robert could say anything, the creepy fore teller stormed through the tunnel with a bark and disappeared out of sight.

 


	6. A Guardian's Task

**Prelude**

There was a difference between a pub in large cities and a pub that laid in the middle of nowhere. _The Black Dog_ was such a pub. It laid in Suffolk at the edge of a small town and it was the only place where you could buy a decent drink. The guests were not many people and therefore they knew each other quite well. This was the place where you could get pieces of information on the outside world as the bartender talked with all his guests and the travellers that were just passing through.

The bar was rather small. Fogging, small windows allowed just enough sunlight into the room to enlighten several shabby tables where the locals sat and drank their beer. The bartender was cleaning glasses. However most people of the town were huddled up at two tables, leaving the table near the door almost alone with one person sitting there, face hidden in the shadows.

Olalla Hyde had travelled back to the Jeziquel's house; her house now. Being the Guardian of the Gateway meant she could not stay in London for too long. The townspeople had all been rather shocked when she had reported Renata Jeziquel's death and claimed the house as her own, being a distant cousin. However Olalla had quickly established herself as the reputation of a devil's woman, a dangerous girl that caused even the toughest guys to tremble.

This was the reason everyone avoided her table as if she was carrying a disease with her. Olalla did not mind it though. She was nipping at a glass with cherry whine and was running over her upper lips with her fingers. The girl looked at the card, she was writing. It said:

_Dear Robert,_

_I'd like to apologize. I behaved awful at Magarete's funeral and I said some pretty nasty things and for that I am sorry. I did not mean to trigger your anger. I was just tactless and behaved like a spoiled child. I did not want to leave with such an impression, but my duty demands my attention. For now. I just have to remember that you and I grew up in completely different worlds and have different mind-sets because of this. I cannot help but wonder: Why are you so reluctant about Hyde? Why can't you just see that he is you? What is it you fear? What are you so afraid off?_

_If you need anything, any help, you know where to find me._

_Lots of love, Olalla._

With a sight Olalla placed the fountain pen down. She read her letter once more. Then taking the glass of cherry, she gulped it down in one go. Standing up the woman walked towards the bar. All the guests backed away from her, keeping their respectful distance. The bartender looked at her. He knew Olalla better then most people as she had started to use him as a feeding source. There was a reason he wore a scarf all the time.

“What can I do for you, Olalla?”, he asked. Olalla handed him the letter. “Deliver this to London”, she stated, “And make sure it gets there.” Eying the card, the bartender stored it away. “As you wish, Ms Hyde.”

~Jekyll & Hyde~

Renata Jeziquel's house laid away from the town, separated by a large field of grass, shielded by trees. The property always seemed to be clouded in mist and shadows. The large, dark forest caused weird silhouettes at night. The wind softly moved a few low hanging branches, damp from the mist. Dosh grew on the barks like a pelt. It was hard to see much when one wandered through the grey sea.

There was only one footpath which lead towards the house. It was hardly used and hide itself underneath grass, dosh and sludge. As Olalla was walking alongside it, she came across a car. The woman stopped and blinked in confusion. Tilting her head aside, she eyed it. One thing was for sure: _That is not Robert's car!_ He would have told her if he came to visit and it was unlikely that he came after the argument they had only a few days ago.

The car was one of these ugly trucks, which had a cheap, black plastic excess. The wheels were thick and covered in mud. The seats looked hard and uncomfortable, the leather fake. Olalla only knew one possible organization that would give its henchmen such low equipped cars. The realization hit her like a wave of cold water: Tenebrae was here.

 _What do they want here?_ Olalla started to race down the path towards the house. Her ears rang from blood, pumping in her veins. She thought to hear Renata's voice again, telling her about the gateway, hidden in the cathedral and the importance of the Jeziquel's Family Book. If Tenebrae got their hands on that, they could do dangerous things. Maybe even free Lord Trash. Was this possible? After all Hyde destroyed his heart. But how did Lord Trash work? He was an immortal and how did you kill an immortal?

The house appeared in her vision. It was a large, old building with ancient looking sims and decorations at the wall. Even the ceiling had something old and strange about it. The iron gate that laid a few feet before it was forced open. Olalla's brows furrowed in anger as she raced through it.

She slammed the door of the house open. The intruders were still there. The young Hyde found them in the living room. Three men had turned the room upside down in search for somebody or something. Carpets were re thorn, chairs thrown around, drawers pulled open. Papers and boxes laid scattered across the floor. They were still doing it as the house owner entered.

Olalla let a soft growl vibrate in her throat and leaned against the door frame. “Now what do you think you are doing here?” The intruders turned around, stopping in their tracks. They were butcher-like figures, wearing cheap, black cloaks that did not seem to fit their frames. Black eye patches over the left eye in their dull, brutal faces. And the man in the middle with the short mustache and the fair brown hair was none other then Silas.

 _How interesting that a group of minions makes it into this room._ Olalla felt the thrill rushing through her veins. She was ready to preform her duty for the very first time. Even if it simply meant beat a group of men up.

One of the bandits shouted: “There is that Hyde girl! Shoot her!” Another one lifted his gun and shot. The blow echoed through the room. Olalla felt the bullet dig into her shoulder. She was staggering for a brief moment, before she readjusted her footing. Looking at the wound in her blouse, she turned back to face Silas, a maddening grin on her lips. Her eyes flashed cyan.

“Why, Silas?”, taunted Olalla and pouted, “You ruined my blouse. How could you do that? Is this a way to treat a lady?” Taking a step forwards, she slammed her hand in the bandit by her left side. The man gasped in shock as he got thrown across the room, slamming against the sofa, tossing over it, before he laid still. Olalla swirled around and grinned. They were no match for her, even if it were three against one. Hyde's strength, rage and speed made up for her being one person.

The man who had shot her raced forwards in an attempt to slam a wooden stick into her side. Olalla sidestepped and watched him race passed her. “Try something better, you moron”, she called. Hand forming into a fist, Olalla stroke the man's neck. He bellowed in shock as he fell on his knees. Olalla used his stick to give him a few lashes, causing several bruises on his arms and face.

Now only Silas was left to be dealt with. _This is going to be fun._ Hyde boiled inside of her, enjoying every minute of this little fight, causing her to go to greater extremes. For her this was not even a fight, but a game. She was the puppeteer and he was his puppet. Her little puppet, which danced on strings to her command and for amusement. Her eyes glowed in a maddening cyan and the veins around them darkened as Olalla let out a hiss. She spotted the book he was holding in his hands. The Jeziquel book.

“Didn't Mommy tell you not to steal stuff that does not belong to you?” Kicking Silas in his fat stomach, Olalla watched him fly across the room. He slammed against a curtain and got coiled up in it. The book fell on the floor with a low thud. Pushing it aside with her foot, Olalla slowly approached Silas who tried to free himself from the curtain he was entangled in.

“You know what I sometimes wonder”, the blonde said and bent down before Silas, “Why Dance is not killing you yet? You are such a moron and can hardly get anything right. Maybe he sees letting you fail and face his rage as the greatest punishment of all. Or maybe he has just not yet found a decent reason to chop your head off.” Olalla grabbed the bandit by his collar and lifted him up with one hand.

He gasped in shock as he got pinned against the wall. “W...what are you gonna do?”, croaked Silas. Olalla leaned forwards. Her grin grew wider. “It is your lucky day, Silas”, she whispered, “I am not going to kill you. I need you to deliver a message to Dance.”

~Jekyll & Hyde~

“I must be surrounded by morons”, whispered Dance. The Captain was sitting at a table in the _Daily Truth_ building. It was a large, fancy table and the chair in which he leaned was rather comfortable. It actually belonged Prothero, but right now Captain Dance had taken it as his own. After all minions should recognize their leader at once when they entered.

Silas and his two men were standing before the table. They were covered in bruises and lacerations. Silas had a red mark near his throat. They all tried to have some kind of composer, but they could not deny it. Dance was angry and he had every right to be.

“You failed at something so simple”, stated Dance with folded arms, “that it makes me wonder: Did my Vetala ate your brains and I did not notice it? This task was not hard. And yet you failed. Miserably.” He let his scoll sink in, watching the bandits, sharing glances. No one wanted to speak up for defense.

“Captain Dance, I can explain”, stammered Silas finally. He tried to save the little dignity, the undead man left the bandits. “You can have your defense in a minute”, cut Captain Dance him short. He was not done yet with the interrogating let alone dealing. “Yes, Captain Dance, sir.”

His brown eyes glowed as Dance stated: “If I thought this was difficult, I would have told you to stay here and done it myself. But I thought: What can go wrong? All you have to do was get a book out of an abandoned house.”

“Not quite abandoned”, interrupted Silas and fell silent when Dance laid eyes on him. He slowly removed the gloves from his hands. As he lifted his hand, they all thought death was breathing in their neck. “I will not tolerate mistakes, Silas.”

“Sir, this was not my fault”, explained Silas and he stumbled over his words, “We were not prepared to face any guard.” “A guard, you say?” Dance lifted a brow. “Well, then I suspect you can tell me who was the moron that got the guard's attention in the first place.”

Silas fell silent and lowered his glance. He and his colleagues seemed uncomfortable. Slowly turning around, Silas looked at the man to his right. Feeling all eyes rested on him, the bandit stammered an excuse: “Well, you see, you did not tell us there was a guard, and it was a powerful one.” “So you are saying it is my fault”, guessed Dance coldly and leaned into Fedora's touch. She stood behind him and watched silently.

“No, Captain Dance, sir!”, stammered the man, sweating. “You!” Dance turned around and looked at the third man, “Tell me whose fault was it. Who alarmed the guard? Who shall I shoot this time?” The bandit had several marks on his arms. He stammered: “I did nothing wrong, Captain Dance. I did quite well to be honest.” He looked at Silas. “But I was not the one in charge, was I? I was not the one given the orders. We did what Silas told us to do. He is responsible for this outcome. So he should take the blame, shouldn't he?”

Blue magic sparkled around his fingers as Dance lifted his hand. “There is no denying you failed in your task, Silas.” The leader lowered his head, shuddering, preparing for the next moment, the moment that would end his life.

Dance's voice was barley a whisper: “The only reason you are still alive is that you are the only one of those morons that has something that might be called a brain. Prothero is too selfish to do anything like that and I do not want to send my dear Fedora to do every single task.” He smiled at her. “They say one should keep his best cards close to his chest and that is what I do. If I found any man who did this job better then you, you would be dead in an instant.”

Silas whispered: “I understand, Captain Dance.” “However somebody must take the blame.” Dance stood up and approached the bandit with the bruises. “You. You have doubted the authority of your boss and we cannot have these kind of doubts.” The man stammered: “No! No, no, no!” “You are discharged.”

Eyes cold as black fire, Dance placed his hand on the bandit's chest. More blue fire enwrapped him. The man gasped. Silas and his colleague twitched backwards, eyes wide in terror. In front of them the man aged rapidly. His flesh seemed to melt from the bones, his eyes poped out of their caves and soon afterwards his appearance became skelletonlike. Another Vetala had been born.

Dance took a step backwards. “Dismissed”, he commanded, “All of you.” The two left bandits literally raced towards the door. However before they could reach it, the undead Captain added coldly: “Except Silas.” The ugly man stopped in his track. He gulped and turned around. Face pale and covered in sweat, he asked: “Yes, Captain Dance?”

Captain Dance leaned himself against the table. Waving his fingers, he gave Silas the command to come closer. When the fat man stopped before him, the senior officer asked: “Who was the guard?” “Eh...I...I don't know.” His words came as a brief pant, hoarse and dry. Dance smiled. “Please, Silas, you are a terrible liar. And the marks on your neck speak for themselves. Do not withhold information from me. Who was the guard?”

Silas swallowed. Dance ticked off the seconds in his head. Ten, nine, eight… When he had reached zero, the bandit busted out: “Olalla Hyde! It was Olalla Hyde!” His face was red and Silas slapped his hands on his mouth as if he had just let out a bad insult. Dance seemed to freeze. Emotions fought on his face for superiority, but he kept his composer.

“Did she say anything?”, asked the undead man, “Or did she just beat you up?” Silas responded hastily: “No! She said, she is the new guardian now and any Tenebrae member who enters her property will get killed. No exceptions.” He ducked away, expecting an outburst of rage from Dance's side.

But the senior officer only lowered his head. “Leave”, he snarled through his teeth and Silas obeyed. Only when he was gone, did Dance allowed his emotions to reach him. Shock, anger and hate boiled inside him. Oh, what a cruel twist of fate! His own daughter had not only left Tenebrae, but now truly worked against him.

But there was also something else inside him. Was it regret? Remorse? Sadness? Bitterness? The small core inside him that had always loved Olalla seemed to be shaken the most and did not know how to react.

Fedora approached him with worry in her face. “Darling”, she asked, but Dance turned his back on her. He stared at his reflection in the mirror. But in his mind he was away, far away. Many years back in the past in a small bedchamber and his eyes rested on the little girl that sat in the corner of the room, her face buried in her arms.

~Jekyll & Hyde~

The soft whine filled his ears. Dance had never expected that a child of this seize could produce such a sound. Olalla had turned her back on him and curled herself up into a small ball. Her blonde hair bristled from her sobs.

Dance slowly closed the door behind himself. They had brought her into a normal bedroom. No cell or something dark and spooky. When Olalla heard the door click, she turned around. Her blue eyes widened in fear and she backed away. “Don't hurt me!”, she squeaked like a terrified animal and lifted her hands as if she feared a slap.

“Easy, Olalla”, responded Dance softly, “I am not going to hurt you.” He tried to come closer, but she backed away until her back touched the wall. The undead man could see the marks Keres had left after she had harmed and terrified the poor child. No wonder she feared him.

Her tears kept running down her face like liquid crystal. “I want my Daddy back”, she whined, “Why isn't Louis coming home? Why is he not going to save me?” Dance sighed and sat down on the bed. He kept his distance, not wanting to scare her further. Looking into her pure, innocent eyes, the man responded: “Jekyll is not going to come back.”

Olalla's eyes widened. She seemed to forget to cry. Dance's words were soothing and soft like a dark lullaby. His lies enwrapped themselves around the young girl's brain ready to shape her belief, change her allegiance. “Why should he come back? He saved the child, he wanted to save. Your brother, Robert. He was the important one. You were just the second sibling, he did not need.”

“No”, whispered Olalla and seemed to choke on her own words, “He would never do this.” Doubt. Dance had to resist a smile. He knew he had broken through the first cell. Now he had to reach her core, carefully replacing all her believes. Turning Louis Hyde into the enemy and Tenebrae into her new home.

“I am afraid, he would. That's how Jekylls are, Olalla. They lie and they betray you when you need them the most.” Dance shook his head with a sad sigh. “Louis used to work for us, for Tenebrae. He was an excellent soldier and I could always rely on him. But then he turned his back on me. Just like he turned his back on you. Don't expect him to come back. He has proven who he values more. Your brother. For him, you will always be number two.”

Olalla was crying again. She leaned forwards like a child that begged for a hug. The first sign he had been waiting for. Very slowly Captain Dance moved across the bed. Until their knees touched. Olalla flinched. “Shhh”, the undead man whispered, “You are going to be alright.”

“I want to go home”, stammered Olalla, “I want my Daddy back. I don't want to feel this anymore.” Dance tilted his head aside. “Feel what anymore?” She looked at him, lips trembling. “This pain, this fear, this weakness.”

“Yes”, whispered the Captain with pity in his voice, “Jekyll is weak. However, there is more than meets the eye.” He smiled and carefully pulled something out of his pocket. It was a weird object, looking like some kind of thick fork. Its handle was filled with a red liquid. Softly weighting it in his hands, Dance explained: “There is more to you that meets the eye. Do you know what you are, Olalla?”

She shook her head. “What is that?”, she asked and pointed at the object. Dance smiled. “It's called a bloodspike”, he explained, “It is a wonder object.” He carefully lifted a hand and caressed her cheek. Olalla flinched briefly, but then she allowed the touch. “You must know; you are what we are. You have something inside you. Another side of you that has never been set free. A side that is strong, wild, powerful, that knows nothing of this all.”

He waved the bloodspike before her. “And all we have to do to let her come out is piercing you with the spike.” Olalla eyed the object with fascination. Her small hand reached forwards in an attempt to grab it. “Ah, ah, ah. Let Daddy do this”, Dance scolded her softly.

“Give me your hand.” Dance had laid his own hand on his lab and waited. Olalla carefully laid her own hand in his. The undead man pushed up her sleeve, revealing naked skin. Then he lifted the spike and slowly let the two needles slice through the skin.

For a brief moment nothing happened. Then a shrill, high-pitched, murderous scream filled the air. Olalla buckled over and almost slipped of the bed. Her veins pulsated and her head jerked around. Her jaws forced themselves open as she kept screaming and roaring. The first transformation always was the most painful one.

Dance grabbed Olalla by her shoulders. “W...what is happening?”, she gasped between two screams and struggled even more. “It is alright. She is coming out.” Dance softly embraced Olalla and caressed her bristling hair. He held the struggling girl against his frame, tenderly, softly. His lips were close to her ear.

“Hyde is your true name”, Captain Dance whispered, “Tenebrae is your true family.” He felt her relax and lean against him with new confidence. The undead man patted her shoulder and kept her in his arms. “And I am your father.” From the corner of his eyes, Dance saw Olalla's lips, pulling into a bloodthirsty smile and her eyes got enlightened by a malicious cyan glow.

~Jekyll & Hyde~

“Darling?” Her voice made him snap back into the now. Captain Dance turned his head and looked at Fedora. The fair skinned woman smiled sadly. “You do not seem to like what Silas told you, don't you? You still love her.” Oh, she knew him too well.

Dance took Fedora's shoulders and pushed her close to him. Bending over her, he responded: “It is impossible not to like something you raised yourself.” He would never admit it aloud, but Dance truly loved Olalla. He always was filled with pride when he thought about her. Keres' order to raise her had been his most complex task in a long while and he was proud of what he had accomplished.

Therefore knowing that she had left him, Tenebrae and now worked against him left a bitter taste in his mouth. Dance responded: “Remember you too raised her.” Fedora smiled and softly caressed his neck. “Oh, but you know that she was closer to you then she was to me. You deserve the praise of being her father. I just assisted with the execution.”

Their tender moment was broken when a sharp pain clawed itself into Dance's forehead. He groaned in anger and pressed a hand on his temple. _Keres…_ Of course she too knew what had happened. And she had to tell Dance her thoughts about it immediately.

Reluctantly Dance turned frigid and opened his mind to her, allowing Keres to communicate telepathically. _“Well, well. Now we know where our runaway went.”_ Dance hissed: _Yes. Moreover, we know that she has the book. “Well, then our next step shall be easy. We kill Olalla and get the book.”_

Kill Olalla. He had to avoid gasping. Fear and care wanted to bubble up inside of him, but Dance fought these emotions down. The organization came first, personal desires later. He already broke that rule once. And Olalla was a traitor. Traitors had to die. Still, he could not just kill her. Not yet.

 _Keres, think about this. What if we need Olalla again?_ Her voice was sharp and cold: _“Don't try to argue with me about this, Dance!” Please! Hear me out! This is not lead by foolish emotions. Olalla is smart. She is one of the best soldiers we ever had. I even think, she has the potential to become an officer. What if we need her? What if the book somehow has protections of any kind? “Do not plead for her life with me.” Keres, listen. I have an idea. And I promise, it will work. Just don't kill her yet!_

Keres fell silent for a long time. Dance kept massaging his temples. He waited, did not dare to breath. Finally the death spirit's voice echoed through him: _“Fine. We shall do it your way. But if your plan backfires in any way, you will kill her. If you hesitate, I will make you do it!”_

Dance nodded and she left him. Fedora asked: “Dance? What have you decided?” The Captain smiled. “Keres will get the book.” “But Olalla is guarding it.” “Then we have to make her leave”, responded Dance, “And believe me, she will leave. We just need to get Robert Jekyll in trouble.”


	7. Monsters set in stone

**Prelude**

The walls felt thick around him. They left him minimum space and he could see nothing. Suddenly a cracking sound. Light, that fell through slits. He struggled as he forced the walls open, angrily hissing to himself. His body felt long and slippy. Feathers that were wet from the liquid of his egg.

He looked around. He was in a narrow street. A few damp cartons and a toad that looked at him with big, brown eyes, squawking. He licked his lips and growled. Slowly slithering over the ground, he made his way through the street. Night spread over London. Lamps send strays of orange light every now and then. But he kept himself in the shadows. His head twitched around, scanning for a possible prey.

He finally found what he was looking for. A woman was slowly walking down the street. She wore a small hat and had locks. His feathers bristled and his long body slide towards her. He sneaked out of the shadows, made her turn around, saw her eyes widen and heard her scream.

But there was also another scream. Higher, younger and more boy like. It was coming out of his mouth as he was Ravi Najaran who jumped upwards in his bed, jerked out of his sleep.

~Jekyll & Hyde~

“This better be important.” Bulstrode slowly moved his glasses upwards. He was scratching notes on his notepaper. The chief sat at his massive desk, the stylized sun in his back. The golden emblem spread across the wall, giving the place the air of a throne room. Bulstrode was a prideful man and it showed. He saw himself as a saivour and MIO was his tool. Without him, they would be nothing! “You do know how much I hate mondays.”

The old chief looked up. In front of him stood Hannigan. The man was a bit fat, had a bushy mustache and wore a small, black hat. Even with his suit, Bulstrode was reminded of a walrus. It was not that he disliked this agent. In fact Hannigan was like his second hand. He was reliable and did his job with the same heart Bulstrode did.

“What is it, Hannigan?”, asked the man. The agent grunted: “You might want to take a look at this, Bulstrode.” Bulstrode rose and followed Hannigan in the lift. It too was encased in gold. No true gold, but this fake, cheap gold that got cased over iron and other metals. The whole place was as fake and rotten as the organization it inhabited.

Hannigan brought Bulstrode to a corpse that laid on the table. Rannigan, the scientist, stood before it. He stated: “I am sorry, sir, but we have no idea what killed it.” On Bulstrode's command, he removed the plastic blanket which hide the dead man from curious eyes. _Oh dear lord…_

The corpse seemed to be in perfect health on first sight. There was no wound, no blood, no gap in the throat or anything else that made it look like someone had re thorn it. (A rather unnormal view for Bulstrode as most monsters were rather brutal and created quite a mess). However the person's face was pale, her body seemed rigid and stiff and her eyes were widened in terror.

“This looks odd”, stated Bulstrode and tilted his head. He crossed his arms behind his back. “Is she really dead?” “Well, she is motionless”, responded Hannigan, “Looks kinda dead to me.” Rannigan lifted a brow and asked: “Are you suggesting she is not dead? But petrified or something?” The chief nodded as he bent over the body. “The possibility is there.”

Rannigan, Sackler and Hannigan looked at one another. Sackler asked: “But what monster does this?” “A gorgon”, guessed Hannigan. Bulstrode shook his head. “That does not make sense”, he stated, “Gorgons turn people into stone. This woman is petrified.”

“Is there a difference between being turned into stone and being petrified?”, asked Sackler in confusion. The blonde agent lifted a brow. “Yes, there is, Sackler”, responded Bulstrode, “After all a penguin and a pigeon is not the same, even if they are both birds. We do not have a stature in the house after all.”

Rannigan coughed. “What, Rannigan?”, asked Bulstrode annoyed. The scientist sighted. “This is not the only corpse.” He waved the chief to another table. Bulstrode spotted a boy with a sick looking face. Rannigan moved his head and revealed a green, sticky substance at the corners of the mouth.

“Poison”, explained Rannigan, “Probably in food.” _Great, just great!_ Bulstrode inhaled a deep breath to keep a clear head. “Okay”, he said slowly, “We have a monster that is petrifying people and we have one that poisons stuff. Two more to the list of our already escaped monsters.” Bulstrode was in a state of stress since the incident around Lord Trash's heart. All monsters that had been held in the MIO headquarter had escaped and now were probably roaming through London. If they had not already left the city. The government was hot on Bulstrode's tail and he knew they wanted results. The past few weeks had been quite a disaster.

Bulstrode grumbled: “Please tell me that you at least recaptured some of our monsters.” Hannigan and Sackler looked at one another, faces red in embarrassment. “About that”, grunted the fat man in his mustache, “We almost got the Harbinger, however it escaped.” Sackler added: “However we do believe that it dies soon. It jumped over a barbed wire and hurt its leg badly.”

Bulstrode was about to relax when one of his agents handed him a photograph he had just made on his patrol. His eyes widened when he saw the subject. “You do believe it dies soon?”, repeated Bulstrode slowly, before he shouted: “Then how do you explain _this_?!” Lifting his hand, he showed the photography Sackler. It depicted the Harbinger.

The blonde agent narrowed his eyes. “Is that a bandage?”, he asked and pointed at a white part of the image. “No, that is a stocking”, snarled Bulstrode and snapped: “Of course this is a bandage, Sackler!” He lowered the photo and panted. “It seems our monster visited a certain Doctor Jekyll for help.”

Placing his hands in his pocket, Bulstrode gave his next orders with an upset, annoyed tone: “Well, right now we have several monsters on the run. Hannigan, you get a group of men and catch whatever is turning people into stone. Sackler, you keep an eye on Robert Jekyll this afternoon. And if anyone is looking for me, I am in my office, I lock the door and I drink a cup of tea to calm down! And don't you dare to disturb me!” He spun around on the spot and left, not after muttering: “I hate mondays!”

Hannigan, Rannigan and Sackler shared worried glances. They had never seen their boss in such a stressed and upset state. Sackler finally broke the silence by saying: “You are welcome, sir, to Cyprus. Goats and monkeys!” And with that quote he might just hit Bulstrode's mood right.

~Jekyll & Hyde~

Robert's breakfast contained a toast, bacon, eggs and a small cup of coffee. Garson had proven himself to be an excellent cook once more. The young Doctor was sitting in the dining room, which laid in the main lobby. The fire burned in the chimney, sending soft shadows over furniture and other walls.

Robert was taking a sip from his coffee when Ravi came down the stairs. He was moving slowly, his eyes laid in their caves, rings underneath them and his hair was a mess. Concern bubbled up inside Robert and he lowered his cup. Ravi looked like he had slept dreadful last night.

“Are you alright?”, asked Robert, “You don't look that good, Ravi.” His little brother slumped himself into a chair. Rubbing over his eyes, he muttered: “I had another vision.” _This can't be good._ Robert leaned forwards and patted Ravi's knee. His brother lately had gotten this weird ability since the Reaper had been drawn out of him. Neither Robert nor Ravi fully understood it, but it came in handy when it was needed. And a vision in Ravi's sleep only appeared when something important happened.

“What did you see?”, asked Robert. Ravi admitted: “I am not sure. It was very dark and I could hardly see anything. But I could feel what I was. Well, I at least got that I was some kind of reptile. I was in an alley first. Or some other narrow street. I climbed out of it and attacked someone. Then I woke up.”

Ravi looked at Robert, his eyes wide with fear. His lips trembled. Sometimes Robert wanted to hug him and bring him away from this all. He still could not forgive himself that he had brought Ravi into this world. This world of ghouls and monsters, he himself did not understand fully. He had taken away every safety of Ceylon, everything as Ravi knew it. His world had been erased drastically.

“Do you have any idea what this could be?”, asked Ravi. Robert opened his mouth to voice a guess, but then he shook his head. “I don't know”, he responded, “There is too little information.” They got interrupted when Garson peeked his head through the door and called: “Mail's there!” He entered the room and slumped a newspaper and a postcard on the table.

 _Alright. Let's see what we got here._ Robert picked up the postcard and furrowed his brow in surprise. The card was from Olalla. He slowly started to read. She wanted to apologize. They had two different mindsets. What he feared? Robert sighted and placed the card away. “Olalla”, he muttered to himself, “Didn't I told you that already?”

“What is it?” Ravi picked up the card and read it as well. He looked at Robert, whose gaze seemed to harden. The Doctor avoided to look at the postcard. Ravi whispered: “She really cares about you, Robert. She is worried. Can't you just tell her that you are alright? At least respond to the card somehow?”

“I am alright!” Robert's voice had risen and a hint of anger laid in it. His brows furrowed and his veins pulsated. Taking a fast breath, the Doctor added: “Why can't she see that? I told her what I fear. Hyde! I want nothing to do with him. Yet she keeps digging and glorifying that monster. I would talk with her and maybe even accept her, if she accepted my decision!”

Garson and Ravi shared glances Robert could not read. His own anger clouded his mind. Why did they all acted like he had no fault? Why did no one try to understand him? Why did they all acted like it was no big deal? How could they move on? What was their secret? What made Robert be stuck in the past? He just wanted to move on. Like everyone else.

Robert took the _Daily Truth_ and unfolded it. The headline screamed at him: _DOUBLE-MURDER LAST NIGHT!_ What was that about? Worry painted itself on Robert's face as he started to read the article. A woman and a boy had been found dead on the streets last night, but no one could see what had killed them. The police was without a clue.

“Look at this, Ravi!” Robert handed his brother the newspaper. “Don't you think that is odd? You have a vision and right now the _Daily Truth_ reports a mysterious murder that happened last night.” The Indian boy looked up and his eyes filled with determination. They both thought the same. This could not have been a coincidence. “Do you remember any specific landmark from your vision?”

~Jekyll & Hyde~

Westminster Abbey. This had been the landmark, Ravi remembered from his vision. He had came out of the alley and had seen the large church to his left. Nowadays many tourists wanted to see the majestic building with its many towers, cross-coats and most off all the many graves of the nobles and British royalty that had been buried here.

The park was buzzing with life. People were walking over the grass and looked at the church. Some came in, others went out. The sky was rather clear and it was a cold spring morning. Robert and Ravi cautiously moved between all these tourists and scanned the area.

It was hard to find their monster. Especially since they had almost no idea what they were looking for in the first place. Ravi's vision had been a blur and the only hint they had were the reptilian skin. Which was not saying very much.

“You are sure it was here?”, asked Robert. They stopped by a large willow, backs towards the church. Ravi nodded firmly. “The monster, I, was coming out of that alley.” He pointed with his finger in the direction. The street laid straight behind Westminster Abbey and Robert could easily see how the monster had attacked. The ally was hidden in shadows and the big church blocked out any possible view.

 _Hmmm. Maybe we can find some evidence._ Slowly walking in the direction Ravi had pointed at Robert stopped and gazed into the alley. The walls were wet and dirty. Shadows crept over the stone and the rain soaked into his shoes.

 _What is that for a disgusting smell?_ Robert heard Hyde growl inside of him and felt his nose cringe. He turned his head and approached a wall. Something stuck there. Carefully the Doctor dipped his fingers into the substance and pulled. The green slime stuck to his fingers. Was it another Reaper? No, that stuff looked and felt different. It also smelled different. Like really, really sore, rotting apples.

“Ravi!”, called Robert and came back from the alley, “I think I found...” Suddenly Hyde forced his attention to something a few feet above and behind his little brother. On the sims of the window stood one of those waterspouts. In front of Robert's shocked eyes that stoney thing was moving, preparing itself to jump.

“Ravi, look out!” Robert did not allowed his brother to turn around. He sprinted over the grass and threw himself against his brother. Just as the monster jumped. Robert fell on Ravi, who landed in the wet grass. Sharp claws tore his clothes and digged into his shoulder, forming three bloody lines. The pain raced through his spine, seemed to split his skull.

Ravi had covered his face in shock. Now he looked up. “Robert!”, he called, “Are you alright?” The face of his older brother twitched, the veins seemed to darken and a low growl laid in his voice: “I have never been better.” Dropping Ravi like a sack of potatoes, Hyde slowly stood up. His movements were confident, calm and dominant. The mad man rolled his shoulder and neck, feeling bones crack and jump into place.

He slowly turned around to face his attacker. _Kangaroo and dragon._ Those were the first two words that came into Hyde's mind when he looked the monster up and down. It seemed like a crossbreed of these two creatures. It had the seize of a cat, a long, slender body with muscular hind legs and shorter front legs. Two small wings shivered over its shoulders. The monster had a green scaly skin and yellow eyes. The muzzle was short and reminded Hyde of one of a dog. Spikes covered its spine. But most notably were the long, sharp claws it had on hands and feet. They reminded Hyde of the claws of an eagle.

 _Well, you definitely poked the wrong guy, kangaroo dragon!_ Hyde's grin deformed as he unleashed an angry roar. Launching forwards, he was ready to grab the nasty fellow and crush him between his fingers. But he only got hold of thine air as the dragon did a great jump with its long hind legs, catapulting itself forwards and slashing another wound in his shoulder as it raced passed him.

Hyde bellowed in shock and stumbled a few steps forwards. Swirling around he tried to find the monster. The dragon however seemed to be out of his reach and had hidden itself somewhere. Maybe on the roof. Hyde's head twitched around as he searched for it, panting.

“Where is it?”, Ravi asked and approached Hyde. The mad man graced his little brother with a firey glance and grumbled: “Seems like our friend enjoys playing hide and seek. How about we play that game properly, eh, Ravi?” He turned his head and gave him a wink. It took Ravi a few seconds to understand. “You count”, he said and sprinted away.

“I count”, responded Hyde, “And you better get ready.” He closed his eyes. “It is not like this will do anything. It just heightens the fun. For me. One, two, three...” The mad man slowly opened his eye a slit and scanned the roof carefully. Where had their monster hide itself?

“Four, five...” There. Hyde's eye glowed briefly in pleasure as he spotted the dragon, sitting stiff near a window sims. Fascinating how something so small could move so fast, yet could be so still and stiff if required. “Six, seven...” Hyde started to move sideways and pretended like he was searching for Ravi (who had hide behind a tree) so the monster would not be suspicious.

“Eight, nine...” Hyde reached the sims and stopped. He carefully positioned himself, ready to strike not from above but from underneath. The kangaroo dragon would not even know what hit him. “Ten!” Hyde unleashed an angry roar and leaped forwards.

The monster shrieked and tried to jump over his head. The mad man was ready this time. Hyde grabbed the long legs with his hands and swirled around. He heard the dragon yelp in shock as it hit the next wall. Hyde punched it across his chest, before it had time to recover. He felt bones break under his knuckles. Panting and a smug smirk on his face, the mad man stepped back and eyed his work. The monster clearly was dead.

~Jekyll & Hyde~

They had taken the monster and brought it into the laboratory. Now Robert and Ravi were standing at the working table and bend over it. It had a broken chest and its arms and legs were twisted. The claws still red from now dried blood. Robert luckily had no injury from his fight with that thing. Hyde's healing abilities had prevented most of that.

Ravi chewed on his lips. “Something is off”, he muttered, “Something is missing.” “What do you mean?”, asked Robert in confusion, “Is this not the creature you were in your vision? You said it were a reptile.”

“It was.” The Indian boy slowly ran a hand over the slender, small body and looked it up and down. “But I remember something now, I forgot to mention. In my vision I remembered feeling feathers on me. That thing does not have feathers.”

 _A monster with feathers and a snake's skin?_ Robert blinked in confusion. He tried to wrap his head around this description and come up with something, but his mind was blank. He had no idea what that thing might be.

“Well”, stammered Robert, “If this is not your monster, then what is that?” “A gargoyle.” The female voice made him look up. On the balustrade stood a familiar figure with a white blouse, black vest and golden locks. Robert felt his brows furrow at Olalla's sight. “Who let you in?”, he demanded to know.

She laughed and walked down the stairs. “I am flattered by the feeling of welcomeness in here”, she taunted and stopped by the table, “Well, I too read the news and your brother called me, telling me that you were not feeling well. Let me guess: You still suppress Hyde.”

Robert's head snapped around and he glared at Ravi. His brother's smile faded. “I see”, whispered the Doctor and his voice was low with anger, “You did this behind my back! What else did you do behind my back?” Ravi backed away. “I was only trying to help”, he whispered and his sad and fearful face made Robert feel guilty at once, “She is your sister. She deserves to know.”

“I know”, responded the dark haired man and sighted, “I am sorry, Ravi. I did not mean to scare you.” He inhaled another gust of his sprayer and realized in shock how light it felt in his hand. Looking at Olalla, Robert stated: “You called that thing a what?”

“A gargoyle”, responded his sister, “A small, harmless monster that lives on churches and hunts birds and rats.” “Harmless?” Robert's eyes widened as he remembered the sharp pain of the claws. “You call that monster harmless. It attacked me! It tried to tear me apart with those claws.”

Olalla laughed and tilted her head. “It did not try to kill you. It tried to chase you away. Not every monster is a threat to humanity, Robert”, she explained, “Just like not every monster works for Tenebrae. MIO only hunts the biggest threats. Things like a gargoyle. Never!”

“Oh”, responded Robert, “Then why did that thing attack me?” “Because you are monster”, stated Olalla, “Monsters can sense other monsters. You were invading the gargoyle's territory. It saw you as a threat and wanted to make sure you leave.”

“What were you two doing there anyway?”, the blonde asked. Robert told: “Ravi had another vision. We thought, we found the monster from his vision. But we were wrong.” “What did it look like?” After Ravi described his vision to Olalla again, she responded: “Sounds more like a cockatrice to me.”

“Cocko-what?”, repeated Robert. “A cockatrice”, explained Olalla, “is a snake with the head of a cock. It is a very dangerous creature as it has the ability to petrify people and poison them.” Robert and Ravi looked at one another. This sounded a lot more like the threat the news had talked about. But the question remained: Where was the cockatrice now?


	8. Bella Donna

**Prelude**

Robert, Olalla and Ravi were walking upstairs back into the lobby. They stopped when they saw Garson opening the door and letting another figure in. It was a woman with fair skin, shiny, black hair and a blue velvet dress. Olalla's brow furrowed in suspicion. Lily Clarke worked for MIO and the fact that she just entered this house displeased her a lot.

“What is she doing here?” Olalla's voice sounded angrier and harsher then she had intended. Her brother who had taken a few steps towards their guest turned his head around in surprise. Robert explained: “I asked Lily if she could help me analyze the red and green potions of our grandfather. Maybe she has got a result.”

“How can you trust her with a task like this?” Olalla angrily grabbed his wrist and held him back. Her brows furrowed and her eyes threw daggers of disapproval at the young woman. “She works for MIO!” “So what?”, asked Robert quietly, “You were with Tenebrae.” “I am your sister”, she whispered urgently, “This is a _different_ case.” Robert shook himself free. “You are wrong”, he responded, “She is my friend. This is the _same_ case.”

Olalla huffed and watched Robert walk to Lily. “Lily”, he said with a small smile, “It is nice to see you.” Lily smiled. It was a perfect smile. Crafted out of her persona. Just like everything on her seemed too perfect. The way she hold herself, the way she walked, talked. It had something doll like to it and yet Olalla could sense an air of coldness around her. It made her disapprove her even more.

“I am happy to see you too, Robert”, she responded softly, “And I have come here because I finally got the results.” Lily opened her hand back and carefully pulled out two bottles. One was filled with a green liquid, the other one with a red liquid. Green for Jekyll, red for Hyde. Olalla had only seen those potions in the darts, Captain Dance used.

“Really?” Robert's eyes beamed with excitement. It made Olalla huff. She knew what he was thinking, what he was hoping for. _Why can't you just accept that you are Hyde? Why do you have to fight so much against your own destiny?_ Reluctantly she joined Ravi, Robert and Garson at the table as Lily explained what she had found out.

“From their basis both potions are the same.” Lily's fine fingers wandered over the bottles as she explained. “The only difference they are having in their recipe is the amount of monocane Henry Jekyll used. The green potion uses the double amount of monocane compared to the red one. The basis itself is made out of salt and several minerals that can be found in human blood.”

“Okay”, responded Olalla in the 'I have no bloody idea what you are talking about and I do not really care' tone, “And what does this mean for us in particular?” Robert had a bright smile on his face. “Can't you see it, Olalla? We need monocane to transform. A certain amount of it turns us into Hyde. If we want to reverse this, meaning turn back into Jekyll, we need a larger dosis since our body would be resistant against the Hyde dosis. That's why Henry uses the double amount of monocane for the green potion. Moreover this also explains how your bloodspike works on you. In a way it is like you are using the red potion. Because the minerals that form the basis of both potions is identical to minerals you find in human blood.”

“Ohh...”, Olalla whispered and felt somewhat stupid. One could ask her questions about monsters, magical artifacts and fighting and she would answer them perfectly. But science in any way...she was lacking any knowledge in that field. Neither Dance, nor her had regarded it as a necessity to be taught. And Olalla found it quite a bore.

“This gives me an idea”, Robert whispered, “Everyone, wait a minute please.” He disappeared in the laboratory and returned shortly afterward with the red potion and a bottle of liquid monocane. Ravi had told Olalla, he was getting it from someone called Lanyon. “What are you trying to do?” Olalla watched mistrustfully as Robert opened the red potion.

He picked up the monocane bottle and started to pour the clear liquid into it. The potion started to hiss and foam. It bubbled and started to change its color. From red to violet to green. “Yahoo!”, called Robert and looked at the others with a bright smile on his face, “Lily, you are a genius!”

Suddenly there was a loud crashing sound. Apparently Robert had given too much monocane into the bottle. It exploded and send liquid and glass flying everywhere. Olalla threw her arms upwards and the others backed away. She heard Robert scream and cough as he had been in the center of the explosion.

Turning around to look at him, she realized how his movements changed. They became dominant and dangerously calm. “Robert is a moron.” He whipped away the glass shreds and the potion. “He still does not understand.” A dark chuckle left his lips as Hyde swooped passed them and left the house, the cloak swelling from the movement.

“Robert!”, called Ravi. He wanted to sprint after him, but Olalla caught his wrist. “Let him go”, she stated. The Indian boy looked up at her. “Shouldn't we be doing something?”, he asked. Olalla shook her head. “No”, she responded, “He has to learn. And sometimes Hyde is a better teacher then our words are.”

~Jekyll & Hyde~

It was in the middle of the night. Most guests in the Empire Music Hall were already gone or so drunk that they only wanted to sleep. Bella had given one of the girls the order to supervise the bar, while she was changing. Wearing one dress all night could get a bit annoying after all.

The woman with her darker taint was sitting before her dressing table. The mirror showed her reflection. A rough, pretty face with maroon eyes and black hair, tied up. She was wearing the silky red, thine dress that revealed a lot of skin around her shoulders.

Bella was busy painting her nails in crimson red, when she heard a familiar thud at the window. Eyes burned themselves into her neck, hungrily, desire for her. She knew it was _him_ , before she turned around. “Can't you ever use the door like a normal person or knock at least?”, Bella scolded the handsome, dark haired man before her.

Hyde let out a soft growl and leaned against the door frame. “Where would be the surprise then?”, he asked softly. The mad man slowly entered the room and spread his arms. “Are you not happy to see me?” Bella turned around on her chair and placed her hands on her lab. “That depends”, she responded, “You have not been let out for a while, have you?”

“No, I haven't”, he growled, “Robert keeps suppressing me. This moron! Doesn't he know he harms us both?” Bella furrowed her brow. “You should not talk of him, of yourself in such a way”, she scolded him, “I can understand that he is terrified. He, you lost your grandmother. If I was him, I would be terrified too. Knowing that someone else lives inside me.”

Hyde stopped and looked down on her. “It is not that I want you gone”, whispered Bella and turned her face away. She looked at herself in the mirror. “It is just...are the rumors true? That Robert tries to make a potion to get rid off you? He had sounded quite angry when he and Olalla argued.”

Hyde stepped behind her. “Yes, they are true.” He softly let his hand trail down her long, dark tinted arm and pushed the bracelet on her wrist, watching the stones catch the dim light of the room. “And I am trying everything in my power to stop him! Blimey, I am not the only one who tells him that it is useless. You cannot keep a Hyde down.”

He could hear her breath quickening, felt the warmth of her skin under his palm. Hyde always was filled with a thrilling sensation when he was near Bella. It gave him a satisfaction similar to the adrenalin he felt when he was fighting against other monsters. She made him feel alive. Hyde loved so much off her. Not just her body, no it was this air off wildness, naughtiness, brashness and authority he connected to. She was a challenge, an equal.

“I guessed so too”, muttered Bella, “You always come back to me. Even after Robert broke up with me.” There was pain in her voice and bitterness. Hyde stayed behind her and softly rested his hands on her shoulder. “He has no right to break up with you.” The mad man placed his chin carefully on her head, sniffing her perfume. Bella smelled of cocktails, whiskey and the flowery perfumes that were too strong and fake. “And I believe, he may even regret it now. Since his little girlfriend turned out to be a MIO spy.” There was a hint of malicious joy in his voice.

Bella leaned into his touch, enjoying his presence as much as he did hers. “I always wondered”, muttered the bar owner, “What are your thoughts on the situation you are in? On the fact that you share your body with someone else? I know Robert's opinion, but I never heard yours.”

Hyde huffed. “You don't want to hear that”, he grumbled, “I am not a philologist.” Bella turned her head to look up at him. “I am not asking for some special lecture”, she responded, “It just seems that you too have a very clear view on that. More then you like to admit.”

Hyde's lips twitched and he made a face. _Oh, you know me too well, Bella Donna._ Well, she knew him kind off. Based on the weird relationship they had. Sometimes Hyde was not even sure who was holding the reigns. On one day it was him, one another day it was her. But what Hyde knew for certain was that he respected her and saw her as a lover and friend. Not as a plaything like the other girls.

Hyde picked up a necklace and carefully placed it around her neck. He felt her skin tingle under his touch, shiver under his breath. “Do you know what a Newton's cradle is?”, he asked instead off answering straight away. Bella furrowed her brow. “Isn't that one of those devices where five balls are on small threads and swing from side to side?”

“Yes”, Hyde explained, “If you make one ball move, the last ball swings too.” He remembered Robert Jekyll, being a young boy of ten years, playing with the Newton's cradle in Doctor Najaran's office, watching the silver balls swung back and forth in fascination. “It is like a chain reaction. And I think off me and Robert as the same.”

He rose partly and eyed Bella in the mirror. She now was wearing a silvery pearl necklace which went nicely with the bracelet of glass stones. “He does something and I respond”, explained Hyde, “We are connected. His actions affect mine and my actions affect his. He tries to suppress me because he fears my wildness. What he does not understand is that if he does so, I break free, wilder and angrier than ever.”

He had become more quiet now which was unusual for him. Even Bella seemed to have realized so. Hyde furrowed his brow and growled: “I am not asking much from him. If he just let me out more often, I would probably avoid being so nasty towards him. But the moron never listens to me. He always thinks he knows everything better because off his stupid science. Well, _Doctor Jekyll_ , seems like you are wrong! Science cannot explain everything in your precious world!”

His face had turned into an angry grimace and his voice had gotten louder with every word. Bella turned around on her chair, elegantly, teasingly. Her curiosity seemed satisfied for now. Tilting her head, the bar owner slowly lifted a hand and ran with her fingers over Hyde's cheek. “Show me how mad you can be”, she breathed and smirked. Her presence could always calm him down partly.

 _Oh, you are such a naughty, little girl._ Hyde grinned and a pleasant growl vibrated in his throat. He took her hand and pulled her into a standing position. Their bodies collided with one another as Hyde pressed his lips against hers. Bella kissed him back. Her hands wandered over his shoulder and neck, the fingers digging into the fabric off his cloak.

Hyde growled as he deepened their kiss. Bella tasted off whiskey, liquorice and cherry. He felt a maddening fire in his chest. His own arousal and desire made him feel like the moment was lasting forever. Bella was a good kisser. Wild, brave and charming in her own seductive ways. Robert might try to keep them away from one another, but Hyde knew they would meet one way or another. Their desire and the wish to re-experience it again draw Hyde to the Empire like a bear to honey.

Their tender moment was broken when the telephone rang. Its shrill, metallic clang made Hyde frown. He saw Bella pouting. Both off them wanted to continue their kiss. But the telephone kept ringing, taunting them with the sound and its annoying presence. _Oh, you've got to be kidding me!_ An angry growl left Hyde's lips as he reluctantly parted from Bella and marched towards the telephone.

Picking up the receiver, he shouted: “Whoever it is, we are busy!” The mad man wanted to slam it in its fork, however before he could do so, a hoarse familiar voice barked: “Don't you dare to cut me off, Hyde!” He rolled his eyes and took the receiver again. Pressing it between ear and shoulder, he asked: “What is it, old geezer?”

Garson responded: “Ravi had another vision. We figured out where the cockatrice is. It is in the Empire's cellar.” Hyde was happy the old man did not see the grin that spread across his lips. _This night keeps getting better and better._ “Oh, don't worry your poor head, Doctor Garson”, he taunted softly, “We will take care off it.”

Hyde hang up. He looked at Bella who responded his gaze with worried and concerned eyes. “What happened?”, she asked, “Why did Garson phone you?” Hyde rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck. “Well, Bella”, he responded, “It seems like there is a monster in your cellar.”

~Jekyll & Hyde~

Bella's cellar laid next to her bar behind a door. A small, caved staircase lead into a narrow room. Dust laid in the air and Hyde smelled apples. He squinted his eyes. Smooth darkness greeted them. “I can't see shit”, the mad man growled as he took a few steps away from the staircase.

Bella moved sideways and laid her hand on the switch. She clicked several times and gazed upwards where an old light bulb hang on a few iron threads. It did not enlighten. “Someone cut the wire”, Bella explained. Hyde glared at her and an angry snarl left his lips. _Great! We have to search in the old fashioned way._

He slowly walked into the room. His eyes were adjusting to the dim light. Hyde spotted the silhouettes off cartons and shelves with bottles. They all felt cold under his hand. In fact the whole cellar was rather cold. The walls and ground under his feet felt cool. Bella had no refrigerator, so she simply used the cold of the depths of earth.

Hyde flared his nostrils and sniffed again. His head slowly swung from side to side. Under the natural scent off dust, fruits and glass was a new scent. Sour and sharp, it stung in his nose. Hyde growled quietly and slowly approached the box where the scent was the strongest. He pushed the cover down and revealed a stag of apples.

But between all those fruits stung a weird substance. Green and slimy. The smell off sour and rotten apples. Hyde slowly pulled it out off the box. The substance pulled strings like cheese. Yes, it was the same stuff Robert had found in the alley by Westminster Abbey.

“Hey, Bella Donna”, called Hyde and turned his head, “Any idea what this stuff is?” He held up his hand, fingers covered in the sticky substance. Bella slowly strolled through the cellar and stopped. Looking into the box, she joked: “Maybe we just have a deadly case of rotten fruit?”

“Oh, really?”, Hyde let out a bellowing laugh, “Then how do you -?” He stopped and his head snapped around as a sudden noise reached his ear. Something had moved by the boxes. Hyde quickly pushed the box aside. It fell over, apples clattering all over the floor. The mad man heard a rustling sound as the cockatrice sprinted passed him, still hidden in the shadows.

Hyde angrily spun around on his feet. This monster was an even better master at hide and seek then the Gargoyle. His jaws were forced open as he unleashed an angry roar. “Come out! I know you are here!” Hyde panted and the veins around his eyes pulsated. _I can fight any enemy. I just have to see him._

There was another movement and the cockatrice sprinted towards the staircase. In the couple off seconds Hyde had it in sight, he caught a glimpse of dirty white feathers and green snake skin. So Ravi had not lied. Their monster really was a mixture of snake and chicken.

“We've got him now, Bella”, grumbled Hyde as he made his way up the staircase, confident in his movements. This would be easy. As soon as this coward was in the open, Hyde would grab it and snap its neck. Bella slowly followed, cursing the designers of dresses of this area. (It made fast movements rather difficult.)

Therefore Hyde entered the bar first and stopped a few feet before the stairs. His eyes widened. _Well, a big pile of shit!_ The mad man uttered a curse as he saw the cockatrice, standing on a table and swirling around. It was a long, green snake with the head of a cock. Eyes glowing red, the monster stared at all the costumers in the Empire. They could not scream, but Hyde saw them freeze in position, before they slowly fell over, eyes wide in terror.

“What is going on here, Hy -?” Bella's question turned into a muffled scream as Hyde pressed his hand over her mouth and jerked her around, making them fall down behind the bar out of the cockatrice's view. “Hey!”, Bella called angrily and struggled in his grasp, “Let go of me, you stubborn donkey!”

Hyde reluctantly loosened his grip and showed Bella's head in the direction of a few petrified people. “Do you want to end like those?”, he hissed. His lover let out a quiet gasp and slapped a hand over her mouth. “Dear Lord”, she whispered, “What is going on here? Poor ones.” She tried to look around, but Hyde forced her to keep her gaze on the floor.

“It is a cockatrice”, he explained harshly, “A monster that can petrify people.” The mad man did not dare to peek his head around. Out of his view, he heard the snake moving, hissing and searching for any sign of life. _Dammit! How do you kill a snake that can kill you with a glance?_ He had no idea.

Hyde was leaning with his back against the bar. Bella slowly turned her face and looked at the bottles. The chandelier shimmered in their glass and she thought she saw something moving. Slowly lifting a hand, the bar owner whispered: “Hyde, don't move.”

“Why? What are you..?” Hyde bellowed in surprise when Bella launched forwards, snatched a heavy bottle and swung it over him. He heard the crash of glass, felt liquid run into his collar and the shrill scream of pain penetrated his ears.

The cockatrice dropped and slithered away, hiding somewhere. Hyde groaned as he came to his feet. “What did you do?”, he asked Bella, “And how?” “A mirror. The reflection of the cockatrice is harmless”, she explained. Liftening the broken bottle, Bella explained: “I used washing-up liquid. Do you know how acidly that stuff is?”

Hyde slowly moved around the bar and stopped. He narrowed his eyes. “Where is the cockatrice?”, he whispered, not really expecting an answer. The hall was a mess. The monster had thrown several tables around and the petrified people were partly blocking his view.

“I don't know”, responded Bella who stepped by his side, broken bottle in hand, “How do you call a chicken?” Her comment made Hyde smirk. He lifted his hands to his mouth and shouted: “Scootaloo! Scoot- scoot- scoot-A-loo!”

Either the cockatrice had planned a counter attack or it just did not like being called Scootaloo, but it leaped out of the next corner, snout wide open. Hyde could clearly see the muscular, green snake part and the dirty white feathers. The eyes were scratched all over. Apparantley Bella had aimed perfectly.

A sharp pain shot through his arm as the cockatrice digged its teeth in his wrist. Hyde unleashed an angry roar and jerked his arm around. He grabbed the monster at its neck and ripped it off his wrist. Blood ran down his skin as he angrily took a hold of the cockatrice's head.

“Sorry, chicken”, he whispered at his struggling opponent, “But you took the wrong person.” Crushing the head between his fingers, he felt the body turn limp. Hyde dropped it. Bella stepped by his side. “Is it dumb when I say this was easy?”, she asked. He grunted a No and shook his head.

In the movement Hyde caught a glimpse of the window. Behind the darkened glass stood a man with a small hat. Even from that distance the mad man could see the fair yellow hair. His gaze hardened. _You've got to be kidding me!_ Bella noticed his stare. “What is it?”, she asked. Hyde growled with hands forming to fists: “Sackler.”


	9. Codes and their Language

**Prelude**

_Oh, dear god! What have I done?_ Robert backed away, his eyes fixed on Sackler. The rain was running into his collar and its dripping sound filled the air. In the distance Big Ben struck nine pm. The night was hovering over London and clouds made it hard to see the stars.

The whole atmosphere seemed to want to fit with the situation Robert was in now. He kept staring at Sackler. It was impossible to turn away. The blonde agent laid on his side. He was breathing heavily, almost panting. His clothes were partly re thorn and covered in blood. The face was covered in bruises, one eye swollen. His left hand was weirdly twisted and bloody.

Robert felt fear and shock cling to him. Hyde never had such a violent and cruel outburst. In his mind he relived the fight over and over again. It could not even be called a fight. A fight gave an opponent the ability to fight back. But Hyde had not allowed Sackler to fight back. Instead he had lashed out, kicked and slapped. Whenever the young blonde tried to crawl away, Hyde had grabbed him by his collar and thrown him back, punched him in the face. He had crushed Sackler's fingers under his foot.

 _What have I done?_ All his fears were back. Hyde was a monster. This had just shown it. Blood on his hands. Robert had feared that his other side would kill Sackler. He was glad he had only beaten him unconscious. But who said he would not do it? What would stop him from doing it when he faced Sackler again? Or anyone for that matter?

Robert's gaze fell on Sackler's pistol. It was laying a few feet away from his bleeding hand, its shaft darkly gloaming in the night. Without realizing really that he was doing it, Robert leaned forwards and picked the pistol up.

He turned around and hurried away. It was better that he did not get caught. The alley suggested him as a murder. And Robert had nothing to say in his defense. Because who would believe the truth? No one. Since no one believed in monsters.

The door closed behind him. Robert hung his head and sighted. “Robert”, a familiar, foreign tongue called him. He looked up. Ravi was sitting in the armchair. He seemed to have been waiting for him. His brown eyes widened and his brows wandered upwards when he saw his face.

“Robert.” Ravi jumped from the armchair and approached his brother. Taking him by his hands, he asked: “Are you alright?” “No, Ravi”, muttered Robert and ran through his own hair with his hand, “I am not alright at all.” He staggered through the room and dropped himself into the armchair, burring his face in his hands.

Ravi followed quietly and stopped before him. “What happened?”, he asked. Robert slowly dropped his hands. “Something terrible”, he breathed. Sweat ran into his eyebrows and his eyes were wide, glassy in fear. “Hyde...completely lost it”, he stammered, trying to put what he had witnessed into words, “He...he attacked Sackler and almost killed him. It was horrible.”

Tears ran down his cheek and Robert buried his face in his hands. Ravi gulped. He tried to hug his brother, but the Doctor stirred. “Don't touch me”, he panted and backed away from him, “What if I change back into Hyde? What if I harm you too, Ravi?”

Ravi's brows wandered upwards. “But you would never do that”, he said. “As Jekyll, yes”, responded Robert and stood up, “But as Hyde...I cannot guarantee anything. He, he is unpredictable. Stay away, Ravi. For your own good.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out Sackler's pistol.

Despite Ravi refusing, Robert placed the cold iron in his hand. “Please, I want you to have this”, he said and patted Ravi's hand, “In case I wake up tomorrow and do not know your name anymore.” “Robert...”, stammered Ravi. The Doctor walked past him. “Not now, Ravi. I'd like to be left alone.”

And Ravi stood there and stared at the pistol in his hand. Until he placed it away with the vow to never ever use it against his brother or anyone for that matter.

~Jekyll & Hyde~

Captain Dance was sitting at his table. They had sent out the cockatrice, which had done its job. Giving Robert Jekyll some trouble and making Olalla leave her position as a guardian. Now Keres could enter the Jeziquel house and take the Family Book. The death spirit had explained that she preferred taking the book to avoid any mistake.

It was a sharp stab in Dance's pride. Keres had not forgiven him for his mistake. He had turned a very important task into quite a disaster and this might be the only chance known to them they had left to reawaken Lord Trash. They could not allow any mistake.

At least Keres had given Dance the permission to find her the instructions in the book to open the portal. The undead Captain leaned backwards in his chair and closed his eyes with a sigh, waiting. Keres had not returned yet. Dance could be patient, but right now he felt a weary impatience as if he sat on glowing coal. They had to get this done. The sooner, the better.

The door opened and Dance leaned back forwards. Fedora who had sat by his side stood up. Slowly with her cold grace and precision Keres entered the room. She was an Asian woman of Dance's seize, had pearl like skin and black, silky hair. Her silver dress shimmered. The face a mask of cold arrogance. Mathematician. Tactician. Dance too was one, but he also was a manipulator and trickster. Keres however did not understand the life and therefore dealt with everything in cold, hard facts.

She stopped a few feet before Dance and opened her hand bag. Slowly pulling out the ancient looking, brown leather book, Keres presented it to him with the words: “The Jeziquel Family Book.” Dance's eyes widened briefly and he had to avoid trembling. The answer to their problems. It finally was within reach! Lord Trash would be free and they should become the gods they deserved to be.

Very slowly the undead man took the ancient book. It felt heavy in his arms. “Where there any complications?”, he asked. Keres explained: “There is one. Open it.” Dance flipped the book open. The pages were paled from the years and the ink faded away. There were images of monsters and beasts of various shape and seizes.

“Those are not the introductions we are looking for”, whispered Dance. Keres nodded. “There must be a second book hidden in this book.” “How is that possible?”, asked Fedora in confusion. The death spirit shrugged. “That is none of my concern. What is your concern is that you must find a way to decode the book so we can get the instructions.”

The undead Captain mused: “Do not worry, Keres. This can't be too hard. We will be done in no time.” He smiled at her. Keres' face remained unblinking and blank. “Do not make a promise you cannot keep”, she stated, “I give you till tomorrow evening. Then you better have some sort of result.”

Waving her arm, Keres literally made a cut into space. Purple smoke fumed out of it. Being a death spirit meant that she could cross the border between the living and the dead. Keres preferred this as a traveling method. She slowly stepped into the gap which closed behind her as if it had never been there.

Dance rested his hands on the book. He furrowed his brows. _Don't worry, Keres. I will present you an result!_ The undead man slowly flipped through the pages. He was determined. Behind her cold words Keres had clearly stated that she was losing her patience with him. He had caused a major blow for Tenebrae and now he would have to make up for it.

Dance scanned the pages, looked for any hint. Any hidden switch. Maybe parts of the papers were pressed together and hide the information he required between them. But they were smooth and thine. It was frustrating. Dance read over the words. They were in English, plain, old English; only some of them were in Latin. Bad Latin!

 _Come on! What is your secret?_ Dance crunched his teeth together and formed his hands into loose fists. Keres was asking the impossible. Decoding this book in basically a day! And he had no idea where to start. Fedora leaned against the table, watching his efforts. “Is it too clever for you, my love?”

Dance's head shot up and he glowered at the Eryins. Any other person who had made that comment would have been dead in an instance. However Fedora was a different case. “Nobody is too clever for me, Fedora”, the undead man responded, “Besides there is more then one way to skin a cat.”

Fedora smiled. Her eyes sparkled in admiration. “You already have a plan?”, she asked him. Captain Dance slowly walked around the table. “You know me”, he said softly, “Always have a Plan B ready in case Plan A backfires on you.” He had stopped before her. Fedora smiled. “Always making plans with that brilliant mind of yours”, she mused and her slender finger softly ran over the emblem at the edge of his uniform. “I do not know if I love your plans or your body more.” She leaned forwards, her breath mixing with his.

Dance smiled and softly took her by the shoulders. “Not now, Fedora”, he responded and softly pushed her a few feet away, “We have a plan to complete and I'd like to entrust you with a very crucial step.” She lifted a dark, elegant brow. “What is that?”

Dance slowly took his most precious possession right now: a golden gun that could fire darts as thick as two fingers. While he stored it in the box, the undead man explained: “I intend to use somebody we both know to decode the book for us. It will save us a lot of time.” Dance took three green monocane darts. Weighting them in his hand, he placed them into the box besides the gun. “I entrust you with bringing her to me.”

Dance handed Fedora the box. She put it away as he opened his arms shortly. The Eryins took a step forwards. Their lips enclosed in a brief, toxic kiss. But before they did so, Dance whispered: “Once she is here, you will leave the rest to me.”

 


	10. Back to Square One

**Prelude**

Robert had left the house for a walk. Ravi and Olalla were both sitting in the dining room, while Garson was preparing some tea for them in the kitchen. The blonde woman was holding a few cards from a solitaire game in front of her. She and Ravi had decided to practice his Sight. He was getting better at it, that was sure, but they still had not achieved perfection yet.

Olalla looked at the card before her. She could hear Ravi, shifting his weight on the chair, face crunched in concentration. “Clubs five?”, he guessed. Olalla shook her head. “Try again”, she whispered. “Clubs six.” A short nod and the woman placed the card down, taking the next one.

“Hearts jack.” Olalla flipped the card down. “Spades three.” “Diamonds ace.” “Clubs king.” Down and down the cards went. “You are getting better”, responded Olalla and placed the last card down. The Indian boy smiled. “I don't know”, he admitted, “Whenever we train, the Sight feels much easier to me.” She placed her hands on the table, crossing her fingers in one another. “How do you mean that?”, asked the young Hyde.

Ravi squinted his eyes thoughtfully. “I do not know for sure”, he said slowly, choosing his words carefully, “Whenever I use the Sight on someone, I...I become that person. I do not just see. I feel what they feel, I hear what they hear. I may not be able to read minds, but I still feel like I become them. And you...” The Indian boy sighted. “We have practiced a lot and your body language is more familiar to me now. Maybe that is a reason why it is so much easier.”

They heard a sharp knock against the door. Garson scuffled out of the kitchen and called: “I check.” For a brief moment they heard nothing. Then Garson made a sound like someone who attempted to shut the door before somebody's nose. “Stop it!”, a familiar voice said, “Open that door! Now, Garson! Or I am gonna shoot yah.”

 _That can't be good._ Olalla and Ravi went into the lobby just in time to see Garson slowly move backwards. “Blimey, Silas”, he grumbled, “Did you get up with the wrong foot in the morning?” The fat bandit was holding two pistols at him as he entered. “Shut up!”, Silas declared. He was followed by two more bandits. They too directed their pistols at Olalla and Ravi.

“Hands up”, commanded Silas and the pistols clicked. Garson stood between Olalla and Ravi, looking at them. _What now?_ , his gaze seemed to ask. The young Hyde slowly lifted her hands and the others followed her example. _We wait_ , Olalla signalized Garson. Her greyish blue eyes widened when Fedora entered the room.

The Eryins had crossed her arms. “Well, well”, she mused, “This is an interesting reunion.” She seemed to be about to reach for something in her pocket. Another gun. Olalla took a step forwards. “What do you want, Fedora?”, she demanded to know.

“Olalla?”, asked Ravi anxiously. “Garson”, hissed Olalla under her breath, “Take Ravi and run to the laboratory.” The old man took the boy by his hand and stepped backwards. The bandits still held their pistols up. “Nobody moves!”, shouted Silas, “I shoot!”

Fedora responded: “We came here because we are looking for somebody.” “Well”, snarled Olalla, “Bad luck for you. He is not here.” And with these words she formed her hand into a fist and slammed it against Silas' jaw. He grunted in shock and stumbled backwards, falling over. “Run!”, Olalla roared, looking at Ravi and Garson, as the bandits charged at her and she fought back.

They were only two, but they came from different sides. Olalla kicked the one in the front in the stomach and saw him slam against the wall by the door. The other one jumped from behind and wrapped his arms around her throat, trying to make her bend over. “Just, wait you”, he snarled, “Dance will get you and your brother.”

Olalla gagged and bent down. Stabbing her fingers in her opponent's stomach, she heard him grunt in pain. The young Hyde broke free and grabbed the bandit by his collar. “Sorry, sweetheart”, she whispered and lifted him up, “What were you saying?”

At this moment a low shot could be heard. Olalla gasped in shock and surprise as she felt the needle slice through her skin. Her eyes widened. _This cannot be!_ Olalla pushed the bandit away and stumbled backwards. The world spun around her and her head ached. She felt Hyde slither out of her gripe, her legs turning feeble.

The woman fell on the floor and got caught by Silas. Fedora bent over her. Olalla's lids trembled. The woman smiled. “What made you think we were after Hyde?”, was all she asked.

~Jekyll & Hyde~

Robert felt the bad sensation of sitting on a chair that was spun around. Shelves, tables and windows passed his view so fast that it made him dizzy. The world had no up and down. But despite his confusion Robert knew what had happened. He always got treated like this when MIO captured him. They had gotten him during his walk. Before he had known it, someone had pushed a sack over his head and he got forced into a car.

Now he was sitting on a chair that finally stopped. Before him stood a familiar figure. Bulstrode wore his grey suit, the red tie screaming disapproval together with his grim and gloomy face. In fact the chief of MIO had placed his hands on his side and looked really, really pissed off.

“Why am I here?”, asked Robert, although in his heart, he felt he knew the answer already. Bulstrode snapped at him: “Sackler has been hospitalized! He is in a critical state. Have you lost your mind? What have you been thinking?” He was angry and he had every right to be.

However Robert felt Hyde bubble up inside him. “I...I...” Robert turned his face away. He did not want to look at Bulstrode, not see the accusing look on his face, the look that screamed monster. What right did he have to make such assumptions?

“I did nothing.” His voice was low, hoarse. Robert had lowered his head. When he looked up his eyes flashed cyan and the veins pulsated. Hyde growled angrily: “You should consider yourself lucky that I decided not to follow my grandfather's footsteps.” His behaviour changed from unsure and nervous to dominant and aggressive.

Hyde leaned himself back in the chair and placed his arms on the back. Bulstrode gasped in shock, before he furrowed his brows. “Do you even consider what you did?”, he snapped, “My agent could die and this gave me a very good reason to lock you up. In fact I could do it right now!”

“I dare you to do it”, breathed Hyde and stood up. “Sackler will be fine. He is young and strong”, growled the mad man, “In fact if there is anyone to blame, it is probably you.” He slowly furrowed his brows and whispered angrily: “Did you really expected me not to notice that your spies are watching after me? Robert may try to ignore them or even pretend they are not there. I am not such an idiot. I thought, maybe a message from me would make you consider what you do.”

Bulstrode angrily knocked against his table. He responded: “Hyde, whom do you think we are? We are a government department! It is our job to hunt monsters and destroy them. Especially those that are in such a close relationship with Tenebrae and Lord Trash.”

Hyde groaned and gazed upwards. “I am _not_ on Tenebrae's side and you know that very well. Besides didn't I do you some kind of favour? The Hearth is destroyed. Lord Trash is back in his nirvana prison. So how about you do me a favour in exchange _**and leave me be**_?!” He shouted the last words in rage.

MIO was so annoying. They kept watching him like scientists an insect. It was frustrating. Hyde wanted to live his life without them constantly peaking over his shoulder. He really hated the fact that he was trapped in the middle. Enemeys everywhere. Why could MIO and Tenebrae not tear each other to pieces without him getting involved?

Bulstrode's gaze turned sour. He knew he had a monster in this room and caution was off priority. The chief responded: “I am afraid, we cannot do this. You too are classified as a monster for us, Hyde, and therefore it is our duty to keep an eye on you. Moreover the chance is very likely that Dance will try to get back on you.”

 _Oh, you just said something stupid._ Hyde's grim expression changed into an amused smile. “Dance”, he repeated, “It is always Dance. That is the one you are really after: Captain W. M. Dance. You know, I have the feeling that your plan won't work. Has nobody told you it is unwise to use the same plan twice?”

“What do you mean?”, asked Bulstrode. Hyde slowly walked through the room and explained: “You know, I always wondered how did it come that Dance got shot in the right moment in that storehouse. How could it be that you were there to save my neck?” The chief of MIO shrugged. “Probably a funny coincidence. Nothing special”, he guessed.

“A funny coincidence?”, responded Hyde and stopped before the table, placing his hands on it. “I do not think so. You were at the storehouse. You shot Dance right at the moment where I was in trouble. The timing was perfect. And how could it be that way? Because you have spied on me. You knew I was there and you knew what Dance planned. I was your bait.”

His face turned grim again and he growled, leaning forwards: “Tell me, was that second monocane bullet reserved for me? If I decided to open the jar?” His hands shot forwards and he grabbed the other man by his collar. Hyde slowly lifted him up. Bulstrode gasped in shock and clung to the mad man's wrists.

“I am sick of being your bait”, whispered Hyde, “Mark my words, Bulstrode: From now on you are on your own. I won't ever help you again. If you want to find Dance, find him without me! In fact, leave me alone. If I see any more agents near my house or me, I am gonna make sure that they die!”

Bulstrode finally found the courage to speak: “This is no solution, Hyde. Put me down! If you harm my agents, I will give the order to shoot you with monocane bullets, strong enough to tear you to shreds.”

Baring his teeth, Hyde growled: “Maybe I should just kill you now. Do us all a favour.” He tightened his grip. Bulstrode gagged. He struggled, trying to break free. “Hyde”, a familiar voice said, “Put him down.”

Hyde slowly turned his head. In the door frame stood Lily Clarke. She was wearing her pelt scarf over the dark blue dress and a small hat. Elegant as always. And skin like marble. Her dark eyes focused on them and her gace was strict. _Great. Just great._

“Oh”, mused Hyde, “Whoopsie. Maybe the doll has used the wrong door. How about you go back to that phantom mother of yours? I have business to finish.” Lily did not move. “Put him down”, she repeated, “He is not worth the trouble.” “You should listen to her”, stammered Bulstrode angrily, “Miss Carrew is the reason you are still free. She convinced me that you have yourself in control and are not a threat to society.”

Hyde laughed and flashed Lily a canine smile. “Oh, how noble”, he taunted, “The spy has a heart of gold. It is almost too much to ask for.” The fair lady entered the office, however she still remained by the door. “I still consider myself your friend, Robert”, responded Lily calmly, “Despite what has happened. I said it before and I will say it again: I wanted to tell you. I deeply regret that you had to find out about me like this.”

Hyde responded: “You seem to have forgotten that I am Hyde right now. I am not Robert. And I do not think I am your friend.” Lily was not faced by his harsh words. She said: “I know you are Hyde right now. But I do not care. I do not wish to be your enemy. I know asking you to see me as a friend is a bit far stretched, so just consider myself as your alley.”

Looking at Bulstrode, she added: “And I am sure he will give you a break if you put him down.” Hyde crunched his teeth and looked back at Bulstrode. “Hmm”, he mused, “What do you say, Bulstrode?” “I give you a break!”, he stammered, “I promise. You just have to understand that we are equals in this fight.”

There was a low thud when Hyde dropped Bulstrode and marched past him. He stopped before Lily. Looking at her with dark, smoldering eyes the mad man whispered: “I suppose, Robert will thank you later.” Her coral red lips twitched into a thine smile. “I suppose so too”, she responded. Hyde nodded once more and pushed himself past her, leaving the office.

~Jekyll & Hyde~

Bulstrode slumped himself back into the chair. He massaged his temples and closed his eyes. Sweat glittered on his skin. The chief looked at Lily and murmured: “Thanks. I usually do not like your logic, but in this case you had a point.” A deep sigh left his lips as he placed his arm back on his table. “What is the actual reason you came here?”, Bulstrode demanded to know.

Lily crossed the office and stopped before her chief's desk. She simply responded: “I succeeded” as she pulled out a sheath of paper. The sight off it wiped the exhaustion from Bulstrode's face. He leaned forwards, hands lifted as if he wanted to snatch the paper out of her grip. “You did it?!”, he asked.

Lily responded: “I did.” “Well, then give it to me then”, Bulstrode demanded. However Lily refused. She stated: “What about your part of the deal? You know how difficult it is for me to rewin Robert's trust. He already knows what stands on this sheet. Besides I agreed giving it to you, if you did something in return.”

Bulstrode huffed and narrowed his gaze. “Fine, Miss Carrew.” His shoulders sank. Lily may be one of his best agents, however her stubbornness and the way she wrapped him around her finger was not really something he appreciated.

“Hannigan!”, Bulstrode called, “Bring me Miss Carrew's order.” The golden grit opened and the fat agent stepped through it. Moving through the office, he placed a long, black box on the table. Bulstrode laid his one hand on it. The other one rested waiting. “The sheet”, he demanded.

Lily slowly handed him the piece of paper. Bulstrode leaned himself back into his chair and started to read. The fair lady carefully opened the box. Embedded in red velvet laid a small, fragile looking silver pistol.

As if handling a glass necklace, Lily carefully took the pistol out of its box. It felt smooth in her hand and handy. She made the magazine click open. It could easily be bent down, so one could shove a dart into it, small like a finger.

“You do realize it was expensive to make this, Lily”, stated Bulstrode and readjusted his glasses. Lily placed the pistol back into its box. Closing it, she responded: “I know, Roger. And I shall use it with responsibility.”

 


End file.
